Questioning
by PJOHoOHG
Summary: Questioning the authenticity of Sydrian's marriage.
1. Interrogation

**Chapter 1: Interrogation**

**Sydney's POV**

With Jill missing, Lissa had a hundred things to focus on. She apparently picked Adrian and I to focus on because it would be a good distraction from everything else. After all, how often do you see a human and a vampire get together? Especially if the human is an Alchemist. At least, that's what Rose said. We were in Lissa's office, her questioning our relationship. She said it was just to make sure our marriage wasn't a sham, but I think she was just curious about our drastic changes.

"So... how did this start?" Lissa asked.

"Oh, I can answer that one!" Rose brightened. "She said he was cute for a vampire when we were looking at footage of him."

Adrian smirked. "I knew you liked me from the beginning!"

I smiled. "Being attracted isn't the same thing as loving you, Adrian."

"Rose, I think they should answer the questions." Lissa shot her a look.

"Oh come on, Liss. Do you know how interesting this is to someone like me? Besides, I knew the answer to that one. It's not like I'm going to answer every question. Although, I might comment..." Rose admitted.

Lissa rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. "Okay, besides what Rose just said, when did it start."

"You know me, cousin. I charm all women from the beginning." Adrian winked.

I sighed. "I thought he was attractive the first few times I saw him, like in the footage and when I was under house arrest at Court. Plus, Rose made him sound interesting..."

"You complimented me?" Adrian teased.

"You were still technically my boyfriend." Rose shrugged. "Besides, just because you sounded interesting, that doesn't mean I complimented you."

"But since I was an Alchemist, I didn't focus too hard on Adrian." I continued. "It wasn't until we were in Palm Springs that I got to know him better, and at that point, he was still hung up on what happened with Rose."

Rose looked a little uncomfortable at that, but she knew she couldn't take all the blame for Adrian's problems.

"Admit it, you loved me. And that's why you forced yourself to be with Brayden." Adrian teased.

"Brayden?" Lissa and Rose both looked confused.

"Now you say his name right!" I exclaimed. "Even Jill... never mind. I tried dating Brayden because I'd never tried dating anyone before—and I doubt Trey would've let me get away with not going on at least one date. I didn't date him because of you. Although, it's kind of your fault he dumped me..." I smiled as I remembered the breakup.

"A guy actually dumped you?" Rose snorted.

"He said I was irresponsible and that he couldn't be in such a toxic relationship. It made my week." I laughed.

"He also said you looked like a whore." Adrian pointed out.

"You baited him into that!" I protested.

"He still said it." Adrian shrugged.

I face-palmed.

"Sydney Sage, toxic, irresponsible, and a whore?" Rose busted up laughing. "God, things really have changed."

"Sydney Ivashkov." Adrian corrected.

"Continue." Lissa looked amused too.

"Aside from multiple attempts to sabotage Brayden, Adrian actually tried to be my friend for the most part. And there were times that I'd help him when he was being affected by Spirit." I said. "And then Ms. Terwilliger didn't really help the situation..."

"Don't be mean to Jackie." Adrian teased. "She's awesome."

"I was talking about her putting more pressure on me. Especially since she knows about vampires. And teaching me magic was against my will at first." I pointed out.

"What are you guys talking about?" Rose asked.

I summoned a fireball. "Ms. Terwilliger is a witch. And she taught me to be one."

Rose looked surprised for a second and then groaned. "That means Yeva wasn't lying about witches."

"I don't think Dimitri's grandmother is the same kind of witch. Mostly because Yeva claims to be born that way, but Ms. Terwilliger summons it from the earth." I said.

"Thank God." Rose said.

"Anyway, Adrian was actually a big factor in me not getting killed by Lee Donahue or the Strigoi. I was starting to realize I had feelings for him, but I suppressed it like a good little Alchemist." I rolled my eyes at the last part. "And then when he really started to like me... Jill started acting weird."

"Weird how?" Lissa questioned.

"She didn't have a crush on me, but she'd stare at me like she did. And she'd compliment me in odd ways, like saying how beautiful my hair looked." I said.

Rose bit back a laugh. "Sounds about right."

"Did... did that happen to you too?" Lissa turned to Rose.

"Not with Christian. I could control it by that point. But with Aaron..." Rose admitted. "I didn't think of him that way, but I felt what you felt."

Lissa looked mortified, but turned back to us. "Go on."

"And then Adrian and I spent more time together, which gave me the chance to get to know him and like him. We were really good friends. But I noticed something off about Adrian, especially when I mentioned Brayden. I assume those were the signs that he liked me. He even stopped taking our self defense class so he wouldn't have to touch me." I said.

"Ah, the days with Wolfe." Adrian sighed with mock fondness.

"And he helped me with a lot of things I was doing. He even started helping me with magic stuff, because I needed to trust someone with it." I continued.

"Don't act like you hate magic. After all, it did give us a lovechild." Adrian wiggled his eyebrows.

Rose and Lissa looked more shocked than when Adrian told them we were married.

"He's talking about Hopper—a dragon I summoned." I said.

"Actually, he's a demon. But Sydney doesn't like admitting that." Adrian smirked.

"What has this world come to? Adrian settling down? Sydney marrying vampires and summoning demons?" Rose joked.

"Anyway, Adrian grew on me. But when he admitted he loved me and kissed me... I tried to suppress my feelings again. I told him I couldn't even if I wanted to." I said. "He was mad at me for a few weeks and Jill gave me a lot of glares."

"You two are a weirder couple than Dimitri and I." Rose snorted.

"I'm not so sure." Lissa smirked.

"Then when we were on our way to Sonya's wedding, he told me he wasn't mad anymore and would just love me from afar. Of course by Adrian's definition, that means indirectly bringing it up and accusing me of bringing it up when I called him out on it." I continued.

"Sounds like Adrian." Rose smiled.

"Hey, it does not!" Adrian protested.

"Remember the perfume? And only giving me money in exchange for agreeing to a date when I got back from Russia?" Rose said. "You don't know how to love from afar."

"Adrian even helped me beat a really powerful witch who sucks out people's souls. I told him I loved him but had to leave for Mexico with Marcus—a rebel Alchemist." I said. "But I ended up staying and starting a relationship with him. The only problem at that point was my schedule and Zoe."

"I like this. It's a fairy tale kind of romance. Kind of." Rose said.

"And we went through all sorts of things, ranging from magic to Spirit to Zoe to finding a new ink for Marcus and his Merry Men." I said.

"Merry Men?" Lissa smiled.

"Adrian's nickname for it." I shrugged. "But Zoe found the Love Phone—an untraceable phone Adrian and I were using—and told the Alchemists. They ambushed Eddie and I. That was when I tricked him and gave him a message for Adrian."

"The center will hold." Adrian smiled fondly.

"And the Alchemists took me. I fought them at first, thinking about getting back to Adrian. But then I realized I had to at least pretend they were reeducating me." I said.

"But reeducation wasn't that bad, was it...?" Lissa looked guilty.

Adrian had mentioned her hesitancy to rescue me.

"I was in a concrete cell naked for a while when they were trying to mentally break me." I recalled. "And then they tried literal reeducation on me and punished me severely when I said they were wrong."

Lissa flinched and Rose looked uncomfortable.

"But I eventually got out and reunited with Adrian." I continued. "He said we should get married so you could protect me. We agreed for that reason, but I also agreed because I knew there was no one else for me. That was it."

Rose and Lissa looked like they were getting to the happy ending of a romantic comedy.

"And the Alchemists gave you guys a pretty good idea of what happened from there." Adrian said. "Now do you believe that our marriage actually means something to us?"

"Yes." Rose sounded like she was holding back tears. That was a rarity for her. "But I didn't think you were lying when you showed up last night."

"I believe you." Lissa said. "But you'll have to make others believe it too. Like the Alchemists and other Moroi."

"Yes, President Snow. I'll convince everyone of how much I love Katniss." Adrian smirked.

"That's not funny. You know what I meant." Lissa frowned. "Now... now I have to get back to finding Jill. Good luck with everything."

Lissa left the room. Rose was about to follow, but then she paused.

"You really have changed, haven't you?" Rose laughed. "I guess this means you don't think you're the victim of my happy ending anymore?"

Adrian turned serious. "If anything, we benefited. It brought me closer to Sydney. I'm not a victim."

Rose smiled with relief.

"This sucks. That means Wolfe was actually right about not letting yourself be a victim." Adrian frowned.

"If it makes you feel better, that's one of the only things he's right about. The man has an eyepatch and eleven chihuahuahs." I laughed. "Plus Ms. Terwilliger's thirteen cats."

Adrian perked up a little at that.

"Do you guys want to go on a coffee run with me?" Rose asked.

"Coffee run?" Adrian questioned.

"I have to get it, you look like you could use it, and I know Sydney loves it." Rose shrugged.

"I still get one cup a day." I shrugged and stood up.

"One?" Rose cocked an eyebrow.

"Adrian limits himself to one drink of alcohol a day and I drink only one cup of coffee. Adrian actually quit drinking altogether, but I'm not ready to quit yet." I explained.

"Now I know what you guys have is love. If you two can limit yourselves that much, then you really love each other." Rose joked.

I smiled. "Want to go, Adrian?"

Adrian shrugged and stood up. "Why not?"

Then we followed Rose on her coffee run.


	2. Coffee

**Chapter 2: Coffee**

**Sydney's POV**

As we walked through Court, Rose kept sneaking glances at Adrian and I. I think it was either fascinating or amusing for her to see us holding hands. She didn't care about humans and Moroi dating, but it was just the fact that Adrian and I were. Sydney the uptight Alchemist. Adrian the party boy Moroi. Now we were Mr. and Mrs. Ivashkov. I couldn't blame her for curiosity.

"My regular and Lissa's decaf." Rose ordered.

"Decaf?" I questioned.

"Lissa's already wound up from everything. Caffeinated coffee would just make it worse." Rose shrugged.

Adrian ordered Kahlua while I ordered normal coffee.

"Alcohol?" I sighed.

"Coffee flavored alcohol." Adrian corrected. "Besides, it takes more than one drink for me to fall off the wagon."

"For the last time, Kahlua doesn't taste like coffee!" I exclaimed.

"How would you know?" Rose questioned.

"I gave her some at Sonya's wedding. Magic really takes a toll on your blood sugar levels, and Kahlua has sugar in it." Adrian grinned.

"So you gave up the Alchemist tradition of not drinking because of your blood sugar?" Rose smirked.

"And she told Sonya it was because she felt stressed out. But shh, don't tell Stanton." Adrian teased.

"Shut up. At least I didn't pretend to cook my birthday dinner after getting a friend to do it." I countered.

"Rowena told you?" Adrian guessed.

"She didn't have to. I know you can't bake or make gumbo." I pointed out.

"Then why did you play along?" Adrian scoffed.

"Because I loved how excited and proud you looked." I smirked.

"You two are so cute it makes Dimitri and I look like strangers by comparison." Rose laughed.

We got our coffee and headed off to wherever Lissa was.

"Taylor?" Someone said.

Even though that wasn't my real name, I still turned around. I spit out some of my coffee. "A-Alicia?"

Lo and behold, Alicia the evil witch was standing a few feet away. "What? Aren't you happy to see me Sydney?"

"Why did you call her Taylor?" Rose was confused.

"Because that's the fake name she used when she and 'Jet' over there came to my Bed and Breakfast." Alicia smirked.

"Taylor? Jet? Bed and Breakfast?" Rose looked like she was coming to an inappropriate conclusion.

"We were undercover looking for Veronica—another evil witch. We found Alicia instead." I said.

"Don't worry, she can't use her powers here." Ms. Terwilliger said.

I only just noticed her for the first time. I ran to hug her. "Ms. Terwilliger!"

She hugged me back the same way my mother would. "I came as soon as I heard you were back."

I was so happy to see her that I didn't want to let her go. Then I considered the situation. "Why did you bring Alicia?"

"There's a witch here that can help me bind Alicia's powers—and maybe reverse what she's done to her victims." Ms. Terwilliger explained.

"Is this witch named Rhonda?" Rose sighed.

"Yes. And I'm supposed to meet Yeva Belikova." Ms. Terwilliger shrugged.

Rose and I froze.

"Belikova? Any relation to Dimitri Belikov?" Adrian asked.

"His grandmother." Rose and I said.

"Belikov's grandma is a witch?" Adrian scoffed. "That explains so much."

"Dimitri didn't inherit it." I rolled my eyes. "Well... that I know of. Yeva's a different kind of witch than us."

"So, where's your callistana?" Alicia sighed with boredom.

"Her what?" Rose asked.

"The demon love child that Sydney refers to as a dragon." Adrian explained.

"Love child?" Ms. Terwilliger smirked.

"It's a joke. Hopper saw Adrian and I at the same time, so he thinks we're his parents." I sighed.

"Well, I have him in my purse." Ms. Terwilliger smiled as she pulled him out and handed him to me.

I spoke the incantation to change him out of statue form. He was sick from not being with me. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Hopper."

Hopper reached out to me and hugged himself against my arm, making wounded animal noises.

"Hey, buddy." Adrian petted him.

Hopper nuzzled Adrian's hand, but he didn't let go of me. He knew I was his power source.

"I think you're weirder than I am now. And that's saying something." Rose said.

"Ms. Terwilliger... my powers work here. Why don't Alicia's?" I asked.

"Because she uses dark magic, which is counter acted by the good Moroi magic. Yours is good magic that—if anything—works better with Moroi magic." Ms. Terwilliger explained.

"It sucks." Alicia frowned.

"And you aren't trying to fight back or escape the human way?" I questioned.

"Jaclyn is more powerful than me now that my magic's blocked. Besides, we're on a compound filled with vampires. How likely is escape at this point?" Alicia rolled her eyes.

"Jaclyn?" Rose was probably more confused today than she'd ever been.

"Jaclyn 'Jackie' Terwilliger." Adrian clarified.

"Oh. Okay." Rose shrugged.

"Roza!" Dimitri exclaimed excitedly.

He ran up to her with a boyish bounce in his step. It was so uncharacteristic I almost laughed.

"What?" Rose smiled.

"My grandmother is here! She's with Lissa. And she mentioned something about needing to see you and some witches." Dimitri said.

"Off to grandmother's house we go." Rose shrugged.

We headed for where Lissa was and saw Yeva and Rhonda already waiting.

"I thought you said you weren't a witch?" Rose teased.

"No, I just said I wasn't a Spirit user." Rhonda shrugged.

"You wanted to see me, witch." Rose made it sound like she was thinking of something that rhymed with witch.

"It's nice to see you." Yeva shrugged. "We miss you in Russia."

"The only Belikovs that miss me at the moment are... basically everyone except Viktoria and you." Rose countered.

"Actually, Viktoria does miss you. She finally learned that you were right about Rolan." Yeva said.

"What are you two talking about?" Dimitri asked.

"Don't worry about it." Rose sighed. "I still don't believe you missed me."

"But I did. You saved Dimka's soul—just as I said you would—saved Viktoria from Rolan, and you were a great pack mule." Yeva laughed.

Rose mumbled the word that rhymes with witch.

"I bet you have a few stories about Rose." Lissa smiled politely.

"You mean like when she couldn't hold her liquor?" Yeva smirked.

I remembered that. Rose was almost as funny drunk as she was sober.

"You, of all people, couldn't hold your liquor?" Lissa laughed.

"The Vodka was like rocket fuel!" Rose protested. "Just ask Sydney!"

"I didn't drink any, but based on what the other drinkers acted like, rocket fuel is a generous description." I shrugged.

"That, and how oblivious she was to Zmey being her father." Yeva said.

"Zmey?" Lissa questioned.

"You didn't know Abe was my father!" Rose exclaimed.

"Dear, you have so many features similar to Zmey that I'd be surprised if you were at all similar to your mother." Yeva snorted. "You have his hair and skin. Besides, I knew because of a dream-"

"I still don't believe that you're dreams are prophetic!" Rose exclaimed. "You just say general things that you think are likely to happen and specify the details after it's already happened! You thought I was going to stake Dimitri when I saved his soul, not find a way to bring him back!"

"I didn't tell you any such thing, child." Yeva waved Rose off. "Anyway, I'm not here for just you. I'm here to bind the evil witch's powers."

Rose bit her tongue in a great show of restraint. She handed Lissa the decaf coffee.

"Do you think you'll be able to reverse her power's effects as well?" Ms. Terwilliger hoped.

"Perhaps. But we'll see." Yeva shrugged.

"I hope you don't need me." I held up my coffee.

"I think we can do this ourselves, Sydney dear." Yeva said.

"Dear?!" Rose scoffed. "You call Sydney 'dear'?!"

"She respects me enough to bite her tongue more than you, is a brilliant witch as far as I'm told, and has accomplished much with her powers." Yeva said.

Rose's faced shone with a pang of jealousy. She may not like Yeva, but Rose wanted Yeva to like her. She wanted her approval.

"Rhonda, see what you can sense about this girl before we begin." Yeva said.

Rhonda scrutinized Alicia before nodding. "She's definitely as evil as Jaclyn described. I don't sense anything else unusual about her. Well, besides her body count in victims."

"Dimka, Sydney, Rose, and Lissa... stand next to this bowl." Yeva gestured to a bowl on Lissa's desk.

We stood where she told us. Yeva pulled a knife out and proceeded to cut Dimitri's hand.

"Ouch." Dimitri hardly reacted to the pain. "Why are you cutting me?"

"Because your blood contains special properties of good magic. As do the others' blood." Yeva squeezed some blood out of Dimitri before deciding she didn't need more. "Get yourself bandaged now."

"I get what's special about Lissa and Dimitri's blood, but what about mine and Sydney's?" Rose asked.

"Sydney has good magic running through her veins. And as for you... Shadow Kissed blood is very good for spells that wage wars between good and evil." Yeva explained.

"But..." Rose started to protest.

"It doesn't matter that you're no longer bonded. You still walk a line between life and death—you just can't see it anymore." Yeva elaborated.

Lissa had her arm cut next, then me, then Rose. Our blood mixed together in the bowl. Yeva added daisies and holly.

"Flowers that represent hope and innocence?" I smirked.

"Very good." Yeva smiled. "Rose, give me your stake."

"What?" Rose looked confused.

"You and the Queen used it to do the goodest of good things—save a soul. I need it to mix these ingredients together." Yeva said.

"Are you going to stake Alicia with it?" I hoped.

"Feeling violent, are we?" Adrian teased.

"No, I just need it as a mixer. Quickly, child! We don't have much time!" Yeva said.

Rose hurriedly handed the stake to Yeva. Yeva seemed to concentrate hard as she slowly mixed the ingredients together. Rhonda started to charm it with some kind of power. Yeva then poured the contents into a cup and handed it to Alicia.

"Drink this." Yeva said.

"Is that all you have to do?" I questioned.

"It's not as simple as it looks. It required a large amount of concentration and usually needs to be done by a witch who draws her power from the earth—not someone who is born with power like me." Yeva explained.

Alicia was reluctant to drink the mixture, but Yeva forced it down her throat. Alicia looked like she wanted to spit it out, but couldn't.

"You made me drink blood!" Alicia exclaimed.

"And you suck people's souls. No one cares." I said.

"I drink blood. It's fun." Adrian bared his fangs at Alicia.

"Shut up, vampire!" Alicia tried to rub the taste of blood off her tongue.

The phone on Lissa's desk rang. She hurriedly answered it. "Hello?"

Someone said something on the other and and Lissa paled.

"What's up, Liss?" Rose asked.

"That was the Alchemists... They want a 'sit-down' to discuss Sydney and Adrian's situation." Lissa said.

"Did you tell them no?" Rose asked.

Lissa bit her lip. "I couldn't... they're already at the front gate."


	3. The Alchemists

**Chapter 3: The Alchemists**

**Sydney's POV**

"You still could've told them no." Rose grumbled as we headed for Lissa's conference room

"You know my job's not that simple." Lissa sighed.

"Yes it is! Tatiana would've told them no!" Rose scoffed. "Well... she would've told them no if she liked Sydney as much as you. In fact, she'd probably do it just because Adrian's involved!"

"That's not the point. I'm a new Queen, which means I don't have the respect and security to assert my authority too much yet." Lissa sighed.

When we opened the doors to the conference room, the Alchemists were already there. Like yesterday, my father, Zoe, Ian, and other Alchemists were in attendance. But this time, Stanton was also in attendance.

"Ms. Sage, how good to see you again." Stanton extended her hand.

"Mrs. Ivaskov." I corrected, ignoring her hand. "And the displeasure is all mine."

Rose and Adrian smirked. Everyone else was either dumbfounded or shared Dimitri's passive expression.

"That's an improper way to speak to your superior." My father said.

"She's no longer my superior. Not after torturing me and threatening us with a gun." I pulled Adrian closer.

"That wasn't torture, Sydney." Stanton said.

"What else do you call putting me in a dark concrete cell naked and taunting me until I cracked?" I growled. "And using basic elements of physical torture just because I said Moroi and Dhampirs weren't evil?"

"Reeducation." Stanton stated simply.

I nearly leapt on her, but Dimitri caught onto my anger and held me back.

"Sydney." He warned.

I calmed myself. "You can release me now."

Dimitri released me and I regained my composure.

"Sydney, look at what you've been reduced to. You were once one of our best Alchemists. Now, you're dating vampires and barely restraining yourself from violence." My father said.

"A vampire." I corrected. "Only one. And he's one of the good ones. He's treated me better in the last year than you've treated me in my entire life."

My father frowned. "I educated, fed, and clothed you. I funded your needs and got you a job."

"There's more to being a parent than education and money." I said. "And that's why I sided with Mom. She gave me the one thing you couldn't. Unconditional love. The only thing I see you as is a sperm donor. She's my mother."

My father's patience was wearing thin. "Don't bring her into this. We're here to..."

"Save my soul? Yeah, that's one of the many lies Stanton repeated over and over in reeducation. But you don't care about me or my soul. You're just here to recover what's left of your false reputation." I cut him off.

"Sydney, you're obviously under the Moroi's compulsion." Ian said. "Just come back. We can be together just like in St. Louis."

Ian was slowly trying to grab Zoe's hand as he said that. Adrian snorted, knowing St. Louis was nothing.

"The only compulsion I've ever been under was from the Alchemist tattoo. And St. Louis was nothing. I didn't do anything other than wear a small dress so you'd help me sneak into the Alchemist archives. It was a coincidence that we even saw my father. Now, get your hand away from my sister's before I render it permanently useless." I threatened.

Ian backed his hand away and Zoe stared at him with disgust—presumably at the fact that he was going to grab her hand while offering to be my boyfriend.

"You let her into the archives?!" Stanton and my father yelled.

"I think I love you, Sydney." Rose laughed. "This is great."

"I... I... she... she said she was interested in the archives. She spent the entire time reading books. And the books she read weren't top secret." Ian tried to excuse himself.

"Actually, I set one computer on fire and stole footage off the other one—of the Alchemists talking to one of the leaders of the Warriors of Light." I said.

Lissa's passive expression turned into a frown. "I thought you said you had no contact with the Warriors of Light."

"We didn't. But after the even with Mrs. Tanner, we decided to reach out and see what we could do to fix the problem." My father lied.

"The footage I stole is from before Sonya's kidnapping." I said. "Zebulon Jameson was who I saw."

Lissa looked like she was retaining that information for later.

"Why did you steal Alchemist footage? Did the vampires tell you to?" My father questioned.

"No. Marcus did." I glared at him and Stanton.

Stanton paled. "You... you met Marcus?"

"And I gave him a more permanent supply of the ink that protects against Alchemist compulsion." I said. "I even learned how to play skeeball. I'm a great multitasker."

"Sydney, please come back! I hate being without you!" Zoe begged.

I started to tear up. Then I made my voice hard. "I'm not going back because you ask me to. Especially not you. You betrayed me. I tried to save you from experiencing Dad and the Alchemists' bad side, but you wouldn't listen. I tried to explain Mom's situation, and you just insulted her. And after you found the Love Phone, you turned me in without a second thought, without asking for an explanation..."

"Sydney..." Zoe got a sad expression on her face.

"Don't!" I exclaimed. "You questioned everything I did and pointed out all those flaws to Dad when he came to visit. You found the Love Phone and turned me in. You and Dad shot at me and used the Alchemists to catch me. You watched Dad slap me and said nothing! And then you had the nerve to ask Stanton if you could come see me with my favorite coffee... I never wanted to see you again! Now, I want to see you but... I'm afraid you'll never understand the truth. And either way, I can't trust you again. I'll always love you, but I can never trust you again. You betrayed me..."

Adrian put an arm around me and held me close.

"I don't think we should listen to anymore of this. The Alchemists should just leave." Dimitri sounded like he was perfectly willing to throw them out if I asked.

I smiled up at him gratefully. We may not see each other a lot, but he liked me and understood my emotions to a certain degree. He was also eternally grateful for when I helped him and Rose.

"I thought we were here to talk business, not wreck the subjects emotions." Lissa said coldly.

Rose smiled at Lissa approvingly.

"We want her back. You can even keep the Moroi boy—and that's a pretty grand gesture considering all the trouble he's caused us. We'll handle our people independently just as you handle your people independently." Stanton offered.

"I've seen the way you... handle... your people. It's even more inhumane than what we do to ours. Besides, she's one of my subjects. Her marriage to Adrian is binding—especially since he's royal. And I've checked into their marriage. It's not a sham. It's love—which means I can't break their marriage unless absolutely necessary. And guess what? It isn't necessary." Lissa said.

It sounded like I was some foreigner trying to gain citizenship to her country—and in a way, I was. I was extremely appreciative of her efforts to save me, especially when she had multiple other things to do.

"But it is a sham! Moroi and humans can't be together and you know it!" My father exclaimed.

"Why not? That's how we were born." Rose gestured to herself and Dimitri. "Indirectly."

"You're all abominations!" Ian shouted.

The other Alchemists glared at him—though, they looked like they agreed.

"If you can't speak reasonably, I don't want to have this conversation. I've got plenty more problems that should take greater precedence than an unusual marriage." Lissa said warily.

"Just give her back to us, and we'll leave you alone." Stanton offered.

"Or how about you leave her alone and I'll casually ignore the fact that you have secret relations with the Warriors of Light?" Lissa snapped.

The Alchemists looked indecisive. Then Stanton piped up. "We'll be back for her. Perhaps when stress isn't clouding your judgement."

"Stress isn't clouding my judgement. If anything, it's helping me see more clearly." Lissa said venomously. "Now get out."

The Alchemists slowly poured out of the room until only Zoe remained in her seat.

"Come on, Zoe." My father ordered.

"I want to talk to Sydney." Zoe said.

"You're not staying without me, and I'm not staying." My father said.

"I can assure the safety of your daughter. Just wait in the lobby." Lissa rubbed her forehead.

There was a flame of anger in my father's eyes. He reluctantly left Zoe in the room. Zoe looked around at the other Moroi nervously.

"We're not leaving, so you might as well talk, Sage Junior." Adrian said.

"Sydney, I... I don't want to hurt you. I didn't understand. I still don't understand. And... I'm afraid of Dad." Zoe said.

"I'd like to help you escape, but I can't do anything without angering him further." I said.

"I... I just want to be with you. And Mom and Carly. I hate the fact that you hate me." Zoe teared up.

"I don't hate you. I just don't trust you. There's a fine line, but it's pretty distinctive." I said.

"Can you find or think of any way to help me?" Zoe asked.

I thought for a moment. "If the custody case ever gets taken back to trial... you have to slander Dad. You have to say that regardless of his education and other things he offers us, he's still an unfit parent. Describe how he gets angry, or how he told you to slander Mom, or say he forced you to get the tattoo on your cheek."

"But..." Zoe started to protest.

"That's the only way to get away from Dad without starting a war between the Alchemists and Vampires. Take time to think about it." I said.

"Wow, that's a really smart plan." Rose said.

"This is Sydney we're talking about. Of course it's smart." Adrian scoffed.

"You know what I meant." Rose rolled her eyes.

"I... I should go. I'll think about it, but... I have to go." Zoe said.

The rest of us followed her out, not seeing any point in staying in the conference room.

"Ready to go, now?" My father asked.

"Yes, Dad." Zoe said.

"Oh, don't tell me you're leaving now?" Abe suddenly strutted in, wearing yet another of his famous scarves.

"Ugh, we don't have time for this, Abe." Stanton groaned.

All of the Alchemists were still in the lobby.

"Oh? But you must have time for me to tell you a story about Sydney." Abe laughed. "The 'deal she made with the devil' as Rose puts it."

"What are you talking about?" Ian asked.

"You don't seriously think she helped Rose just because of friendship or glory-seeking, do you? Friendship may have played a part, but she was paying me back for a favor." Abe chuckled.

"Abe..." I started to protest.

"You made a deal with Abe Mazur?" My father's eyes widened.

"You see, Keith Darnell did something unspeakable to your daughter. Sydney was so enraged that she had me fake the Strigoi attack that caused him to lose his eye." Abe smirked. "Miss Sage... I mean Ivaskov is quite the violent avenger."

"Keith wouldn't do anything to her." My father rolled his eyes. "Aside from the ink problem in Palm Springs."

"Oh, when I said daughter, I wasn't talking about Sydney. I was talking about Carly." Abe laughed coldly. "And he did do something. He raped her."

My father's annoyance with Abe turned into anger. "Don't you dare make up lies about my children."

"I'm not lying. Why else would Sydney stage a Strigoi attack? And haven't you ever wondered why Carly doesn't have normal dating relationships? Why she didn't want to be an Alchemist?" Abe said.

"How would you know about Carly's dating life?" I questioned.

"No rape victim ever has normal relationships, dear." Abe said. "Besides, I decided to watch her after you explained the situation. Why else would I ask you so many favors when you've obviously repaid me?"

"Because you're cheap and corrupt." I pointed out.

"True. But that's not why." Abe admitted.

"I'm impressed." Rose put an arm on my shoulder.

"So that's why you told me to trust you and said you didn't want to talk about it." Adrian realized.

"Sydney!" A set of familiar voices called out.

I turned to see my mother and sister standing with a set of guardians.

"Mom? Carly?" I gasped.


	4. Family Reunion

**Chapter 4: Family Reunion**

**Sydney's POV**

When I saw my mother and sister, all my stress disappeared. I ran to hug them. "Mom!"

"So this is where Sydney gets her good looks." Adrian joked.

"Slow your roll, vampire boy." Carly smirked. "You already stole my sister's heart, but my mom is off limits."

"How...?" Adrian looked confused.

"I told you that Sydney seemed happier the last time I talked to her. And the fact that you were the one looking for her made me think about your reasoning. You're obviously her boyfriend." Carly said.

"Well, he's more than that now..." I said shyly.

"And by more, you mean...?" Carly questioned.

"I'm Mrs. Ivashkov now." I said.

"You're married?!" Mom exclaimed.

"A lot of things have changed in the past year..." I admitted.

"Like the way you dress? You're actually colorful now." Mom looked me over.

I looked down and realized I was wearing a red shirt and purple pants. "Adrian, I don't remember putting these pants on. In fact, I don't ever remember owning a pair of purple pants..."

"I bought them for you. And you were half asleep when you put them on, so I don't think you really paid attention to the color. At least, not consciously..." Adrian smirked.

"Are you implying that I subconsciously put on purple pants because of what you said about my aura?" I scoffed.

"Very perceptive, Sage." Adrian chuckled.

"That's not my name anymore." I smirked.

"Sage will always be your nickname. Just like Sage Senior, Taylor, Misty, Melrose, Melbourne, and Jetta." Adrian grinned.

"I never even used that last one. Jetta was just a joke you came up with." I pointed out.

"Your point?" Adrian teased.

"What's with all the nicknames?" Carly laughed.

"Sage Senior refers to me being older than Zoe, Jetta was a joke, Taylor and Misty were names I used for random undercover stuff, and Melrose was my alias' last name in Palm Springs. And Ms. Terwilliger calls me Melbourne as a referral to a mistake she made on the first day of school." I explained.

"Hey, we forgot Iolanthe!" Adrian said.

"Yo-what?" Carly questioned.

"Adrian, not now." I sighed. "We'll have to adjust them to that one."

"Fair point." Adrian admitted.

"What?" Mom asked.

"Sydney Sage!" Alicia exclaimed.

Yeva and Ms. Terwilliger were trailing behind her in fear and exhaustion.

"Sydney, run!" Ms. Terwilliger exclaimed.

"The evil witch broke the wards with her magic!" Yeva added.

"Shit." The word escaped my mouth before I realized I was saying it.

Alicia tried to send glass flying at me and those around me—including my family, Adrian, and Rose. I immediately knocked Mom and Carly over while pulling Adrian down with me. Dimitri saved Rose and Lissa.

"You're going to die this time!" Alicia growled.

"If I didn't die last time, what makes you think I will this time?" I countered.

"Because you're nowhere near as powerful as me!" Alicia's voice sounded demonic.

"Adrian, move my family to safety! Now!" I ordered.

Adrian swiftly prodded my mother and Carly to the other side of the room and even took the time to get my father and Zoe. Moroi were ducking behind counters and basically anything else in the lobby. The Dhampirs tried to hop in and help like the guardians they are.

"Stupid half-breeds." Alicia waved her hand and they were knocked over.

"Guard the Moroi! I'll fight her off!" I told the Dhampirs.

They didn't appear to want to listen to me, but they did listen to Rose. "Guys, do what she says!"

Dimitri escorted Lissa behind a counter.

"Converterent vitrum abduceret!" I said.

The glass she'd used on me suddenly turned on her. She used a Dumbledore-like shield to turn it into sand. Hopper was screaming like a maniac.

"Shut up!" Alicia sent a spell flying at Hopper.

I jumped in the way and suddenly felt strange. I could still open my mouth, but no sound came out.

"Huh, I should've thought of that earlier. Now you can't say spells." Alicia laughed manically.

I summoned a good sized fireball and threw it at Alicia. She apparently hadn't been expecting this, because she got hit and was screaming as the fire spread over her body. Everyone was watching with fascination, but I was terrified. I didn't want to kill her, I just wanted to subdue her.

I tapped Rose frantically and tried to make motions for water.

"What?" Rose looked confused.

I found a water bottle on one of the nearby desks and threw the water on Alicia. It did nothing to stop the flames, but the people in the room finally knew what I was trying to express.

"Mia!" Rose called to a Moroi. "Use your powers to put out the fire!"

The Moroi girl immediately stood up and made similar motions to what Jill had when using her elemental magic. Water came from all kinds of sources—including a drinking fountain—and sprayed all over Alicia. The fire was put out, leaving only an extremely red skinned Alicia. She was healing fairly quickly, but Yeva knocked her out by hitting the back of her head.

"Wow, I didn't expect you to get in on the fight." Rose said.

"I did train to be a guardian before Olena was born." Yeva grinned.

"I'm so sorry, Sydney. It was too soon after the soul-sucking she did to remove her powers. I'll have to see if the Coven can imprison her until she's weak enough for us to remove her powers." Ms. Terwilliger said.

I was going to say it wasn't her fault, but I still couldn't speak. I gestured to my throat.

"Oh, right." Ms. Terwilliger said and waved a hand at me. "Loquer."

"It's not your fault, Ms. Terwilliger." I said.

Hopper climbed up my leg until he was on my shoulder and nuzzled me.

"I love you, too." I petted him.

"What in God's name is that?!" My father exclaimed.

"A demon." I tried to give a creepy smile.

"Careful, Sydney. You might give him a heart attack." Abe chuckled.

"You're right. It's a bit much, isn't it?" I nodded in agreement.

"What's happened to you?" Carly laughed. "You used to be so uptight. The only time you weren't uptight was when we were little kids."

"She found a party boy husband." Rose said.

"I think they balance each other to the point that he stopped being a party boy and she let loose." Lissa said.

"Love changes you. Right, Rose?" I glanced at her.

"Exactly." Rose smiled.

"I'm just so glad to see you." Mom hugged me.

"Sydney, leave with me now." My father said. "Do it before they change you even further."

"You mean like the way the Alchemists changed you?" I countered. "Mom said that you used to be carefree and happy, but I've never seen that side of you. All I've ever had is an educationally strict sperm donor who caused my eating disorder with his criticism."

"You don't have an eating disorder." He scoffed.

"I did. I only ate half my food because you said I should be just as skinny as the Moroi—which isn't biologically possible. I could count my ribs until Adrian convinced me to eat more." I said.

"That's your own fault." He defended himself.

"Right, because it's my fault that the father I once looked up to told me I should be as skinny as a Moroi. It's my fault you said I was right to hold back on dinner when you cane to visit because I gained a few pounds." I ranted. "I have a feeling you were reeducated and that's why you're so cold."

My father's face contorted into a look of pain before anger flashed in his eyes. "I was not Reeducated."

"Funny, I heard that the Alchemists train the reeducated to say that. They just never got that far with me because Adrian busted me out." I laughed coldly.

"You were in Reeducation? That's why Adrian was asking me about it?" Carly looked shocked.

"Maybe when the right time comes I'll tell you what happens in Reeducation." I said. "All you need to know for now is that Dad had me sent there."

"Jared, how could you?!" Mom exclaimed.

Zoe was about to admit to what she'd done, but I put a finger to my lips. It wasn't fair to take away my mother and Carly's trust of Zoe. This was my father's fault.

"Get out." Lissa turned to the Alchemists. "And don't come back unless you can leave Sydney alone."

"We were leaving before this crazy mess anyway." Stanton said.

"Wait a second, Stanton." I said.

"What?" She asked.

I walked up to her and punched her in the face. "That was for Reeducation." I kicked her. "And that was for trying to shoot us."

"Sydney, I must say that you've changed." Rose smirked.

"For the better." I said as I watched the Alchemists leave, dragging Stanton with them. "Let's go somewhere to talk about my life changes."


	5. Stelle

**Chapter 5: Stelle**

**Sydney's POV**

Since where Adrian and I were staying was too small to have my family over, Lissa agreed to let us sit in her conference room.

"This feels more like a business meeting than a casual visit." Mom commented.

"That's Sydney for you." Carly smirked.

"This is just bigger than where I'm living." I sighed as I laid on the table.

"The table, really?" Rose smirked.

"I'm tired." I said. "Magic use really lowers your blood sugar. Speaking of which, is my coffee still in here?"

Adrian handed it over with a smirk. "You know, when I think of you laying on a table I usually picture broken china and-Agh!"

I cut Adrian off with a kick. "Shut up, Adrian."

"You sure do like kicking people today." Carly teased.

"Adrian can heal himself. At least, I assume he can. It would be pretty badass." I said.

"She's turning into mini me." Rose grinned.

"Rose, we're the same age. I'm not mini compared to you. Besides, it's more like mini Carly." I said. "That's why I like you. You're like a Dhampir version of Carly. Or she's a human version of you. Depends on you're perception."

"And Jill is like Zoe." Adrian said. "Except Jill didn't-"

"Adrian, don't. I'm not mad at her anymore—although, I'll never let her babysit the children." I said without thinking.

"So you are considering children?" Adrian teased.

"Like I said, years away. Besides, I don't think the world is ready for the good looking, intelligent Dhampir children you think we're going to have." I snorted.

"I don't think, I know." Adrian smirked.

"First I hear you're married, now you're considering children." Mom shook her head. "I didn't even know you had a boyfriend."

"Two boyfriends. The first one was a complete-" Adrian got cut off with another kick.

"Stop insulting him. You caused most of my relationship problems." I chastised.

"I was going to call him a nerd. And it doesn't matter if I baited him into it, he still shouldn't have called you a prostitute." Adrian laughed.

"Someone called _you_ a prostitute?" Carly scoffed.

"That, and he accused her of being irresponsible. He dumped her, saying he couldn't be in such a toxic relationship." Adrian laughed. "Sydney laughed so hard that she came to my apartment still laughing."

"How stupid was he?" Carly snorted.

"Actually, he was almost as smart as me. But I had to cancel a lot of dates for 'family emergencies'. Besides, Brayden was _really_ boring, even to me. I was interested in the subjects he talked about, but a date shouldn't consist of talking about subatomic particles and correcting the tour guide when she's wrong about the wind turbines. I'd take eating gumbo that Adrian pretended to make over that any day." I said.

"Too bad the Ivashkinator was out of commission that night. It would have been fun." Adrian said.

"Why do you reference to inappropriate things when there are other people around?" I sighed.

"Because it's part of my comical nature. Besides, people wouldn't know if you didn't scold me for it." Adrian wiggled his eyebrows.

"Sydney... the coven is here." Ms. Terwilliger entered the room.

I sat up. "What?"

"The coven is here. They mainly came to help with the Alicia situation, but they also want to see you." Ms. Terwilliger said.

"You have a witch coven?" Carly smirked.

"It's not what it sounds like. Well, I guess it kind of is what it sounds like. The point is, they're not as weird as you probably think." I said.

"And Sydney... Inez is here too." Ms. Terwilliger said.

"Why?" I questioned.

I'd only ever seen her once, at her house. And she seemed like kind of a hermit.

"She offered to help us... but only if you go see her." Ms. Terwilliger looked unnerved. "She likes you, remember?"

"Hey Lissa, do you have any roses?" I asked.

"In my bedroom window. Why?" Lissa looked confused.

"Inez likes roses." I sighed.

"She likes you and you have to give her roses...?" Rose scrutinized me.

"She doesn't like me that way. She's an old lady, and you have t give her roses when you want her help. She's like a pack rat when it comes to them." I sighed. "She makes everyone nervous. She rarely ever even likes people. But she liked me so much she invited me to come visit her again."

"I like her. She's kind of what I picture Rose being like as an old woman." Adrian smirked.

"Is that an insult or a compliment?" Rose asked.

"Meet her and find out." Adrian wiggled his eyebrows.

So we headed back down to the lobby—which was getting really tiring—and found the coven members waiting. The ones I took the most notice of were Maude, Alison, and Trina. I knew them better than the other members. Then I saw Inez.

"Hello, Inez." I handed her the roses we'd gotten on the way.

"Nice to see you again, Sydney." Inez sniffed the roses before handing them to Maude to hold onto. "I hear you've taken down Alicia twice now."

"The first time was lucky. This time I did it because I knew how." I said.

Inez smiled. "You tend to brag about yourself, but you always put the right amount of modesty into it."

"Inez." Yeva greeted.

"Yeva Belikova. I don't think I've seen you since that Strigoi bit me." Inez laughed like they were old friends.

It unnerved everyone who knew how hard it was to get her to like you.

"Yes, our combined powers mixed with my Dhampir training certainly made us quite the team." Yeva grinned.

"Of course they like each other. They're a couple of old bitties." Rose muttered.

"What was that, Roza?" Yeva smirked. "I don't think my hearing aide is working correctly."

"Nothing. сука." Rose smiled sweetly.

"Calling me names in Russian will get you nowhere." Yeva smirked. "Now, how are we going to go about this?"

"I'll need to analyze her first, to see just how powerful she is. Then I'll make a plan from there." Inez said. "And all of you would be of good use to me. The witches, I mean. Although, all of you are welcome."

I suddenly had an idea. "Inez, can I speak with you alone for a moment?"

"Of course." Inez said. "The rest of you should go to Alicia and prepare."

I don't think they knew what she meant by prepare, but they left nonetheless.

"Good luck." Ms. Terwilliger patted my back before walking off.

All my other vampire friends and human family members left with the witches. Except for Adrian.

"You don't expect me to leave, do you?" Adrian smiled.

"You can stay." I said. "Inez... I need your help. You're the most powerful witch I know—and I'm not saying that just for flattery purposes—so I'm hoping you'll help me with a tracking spell. I've tried to find a friend of mine multiple times, but I can't seem to find her. It's like she's being cloaked."

"May I ask who this friend is and what the circumstances of her disappearance are?" Inez questioned.

"Her name is Jillian Mastrano Dragomir. She's the princess of the Dragomir line, and we're not sure what happened to her yet. She's just gone." I said.

"Well, I suppose I could try. If you're having difficulty with looking for her, then she may be cloaked, so you're right about that." Inez pondered. "I'm going to put my main focus on Alicia for now, but you could meet me in a couple of hours."

"Okay. Thank you, Inez. I'll owe you a lot if you can help me find her." I sighed with relief.

Inez smiled mischievously. "That's nice to know."

Then she walked off to study Alicia.

"You know, that was a great idea." Adrian said.

"Thanks for the moral support." I smiled.

"I want to find Jill just as much as everyone else. Too bad the bond doesn't go in the other direction." Adrian frowned.

"Yeah..." I trailed off. But the bond _could_ go the other direction! "Adrian, you're bond can go the other direction!"

"How?" Adrian questioned.

"When I was with Rose in Russia, we met a Shadow Kissed couple named Mark and Oksana. Mark was the Dhampir that she brought back to life, but Oksana eventually learned how to make the bond go the other way. She can read minds and look into recent memories just like how Rose can read Lissa's mind and recent memories. She once helped Rose establish a connection with Lissa that made it so that Lissa could hear Rose too. If we can get Oksana's help, we might be able to save Jill!" I explained.

"Do you have their contact information?" Adrian asked.

"Yeah, but it was in my Alchemist phone. Rose might have the information though. She asked about it just before leaving Russia." I said. "Can you tell Lissa while I find Rose?"

"Sure. Meet back here after you find the information." Adrian said.

"Okay, see you later Adrian!" I called as I ran to find Rose.

Adrian took off to find Lissa. I was alone on the Court's grass—most people were already at whatever work they did around here. I had to slow down when I ran out of breath, so I started going at a walking pace. Shortly thereafter, I felt a pressure on the back of my head—someone had hit me. It stung horribly. Then I felt a needle stick into my neck.

"You're not getting away this time." A familiar voice said. "Guys, help me carry her!"

Before I could say or do anything, the world went black around me.


	6. Dabbling

**Chapter 6: Dabbling**

**(A/N: Alex (Guest), Rose stopped recovering a long time ago. If you count the Bloodlines series—which is what I'm basing most of this story on****—there have been five books between when Rose got shot and what I'm writing now. I'm only answering this way because I can't privately reply to a guest user.)**

**Adrian's POV**

"So Rose and Sydney really know someone who could help us find Jill? And she's a Spirit user?" Lissa questioned.

"Yeah, Sydney said that Rose even has Oksana's contact information." I said excitedly.

"Sorry I'm questioning you so much, but it's been two hours and we still haven't met up with Rose and Sydney." Lissa said.

"I know. I've been thinking that maybe she had a hard time finding Rose and they're on their way back now, but this is a ridiculously long amount of time for something as simple as that." I frowned. "Maybe you should call Rose."

Lissa took out her phone and dialed Rose's number. The answer came within seconds.

"Rose, has Sydney come to see you yet? You're still with the witches? Sydney hasn't come by at all?" Lissa frowned. "Wait for us there."

Lissa hung up and turned to me.

"Sydney hasn't found Rose at all?" I asked.

"Let's go see the witches and figure this out." Lissa suggested.

We headed off to see the coven. Alicia was tied down pretty thoroughly by some chains that looked like they could hold down a powerful Strigoi.

"Was Sydney supposed to come and see me?" Rose frowned.

"Sydney left a couple of hours ago to find you. She said you guys knew a Shadow Kissed couple named Mark and Oksana and that they could help us find Jill. She was supposed to come to you for their contact information and then meet me in the lobby." I was starting to worry.

"And she was supposed to meet me around now to try doing a tracking spell." Inez frowned.

"Can you track Sydney? Right now?" I asked.

"Of course." Inez scoffed.

"I can track Sydney more easily because I know her better than Inez." Jackie offered.

"Do it." I said.

Jackie did a few things that were similar to other tracking spells I'd seen Sydney do, but she did it more quickly.

"Where is this? And who are these men?" Jackie showed me a mirror she was looking into.

I paled when I saw the scene. It was extremely familiar to me, because I'd slept there a couple of times when I'd fought with my parents—I knew the three guys very well, and they were the furthest thing from men.

"Adrian, where is my sister?" Carly touched my shoulder.

"I have to go!" I ran out of the room, sprinted across the Court's lawn, and felt panic wash over me.

I wouldn't let them do this to her. I couldn't.

"Hold on, Sydney." I muttered.

**Sydney's POV**

When I woke up, I didn't really feel awake. I still felt groggy.

"Hey, I think she's waking up." The familiar voice from earlier said.

I blinked open my eyes just enough to see something that horrified me. Lars Zeklos had been the familiar voice. Wesley Drozdov and Brent Badica were standing behind him. We were in a small room that I assumed was a bedroom in one of their apartments. I was lying on a bed, no restraints on me. They weren't necessary, because as I slowly realized, they'd drugged me.

"I think we should just start drinking from her now. It will be fast and easy." Wesley said.

"And to think, she's Adrian's wife now. Adrian isn't exactly the type to settle down, so I'm guessing this was his way of having a free blood bag." Brent laughed.

"Adrian..." I muttered weakly.

They were planning on dabbling with me, and I didn't want that. I wanted Adrian to save me.

"Since you guys made me hit her, I get the first bite." Lars said.

Wesley and Brent just rolled their eyes as Lars sat next to me on the bed and bit my neck. I whimpered in protest at first, but it eventually turned into small moans of ecstasy. It wasn't that I liked it, it was that my body reacted that way to the vampire endorphins.

After a few minutes, Lars pulled back and said, "Her blood tastes amazing. I don't think she's just human. I think there's something else in her."

He was right about that—but he didn't know I was a witch.

"Let me taste it." Wesley pushed Lars out of the way and bit me.

He too bit me for a few moments before finally pulling back. Lars and Brent stared at him, waiting for a reaction.

"Lars was right. Taste it, Brent." Wesley said.

Brent then took his turn. He bit into me, but he stayed longer than Lars and Wesley. I was starting to feel faint, like I could pass out at any second.

Then the door was busted down. The three dabblers turned collectively to see... Adrian!

"Adrian..." I muttered.

Adrian immediately leapt onto the nearest guy—Lars—and started to mercilessly punch him. "Don't. Touch. My. Wife!"

Wesley and Brent went to pull him off, but Adrian was being fueled purely on anger and adrenaline. They couldn't pull him off for anything, and he actually ended up throwing them off of him as he continued his assault on Lars.

"Adrian, don't." I said. "Not worth it..."

Adrian immediately stopped his assault on Lars, only to throw Wesley into the wall so hard he was knocked out and grab Brent by the throat. "I told you to leave her alone. I even beat you up when you tried to take her last time. And what do you do? You kidnap her and completely ignore my warnings. I would kill you if Sydney would let me, but she's of the belief that no one deserves to die like that."

"You're no better. You used to do this exact same thing. And I'm pretty sure she's just your blood whore." Brent croaked out.

"I only did it once, and I immediately regretted it!" Adrian exclaimed. "Sydney isn't a blood whore. She made it clear from the beginning that feeding made her uncomfortable and that's not what I pictured myself doing with her anyway. I don't want her to be my feeder, I want her to be my wife. And I'm fortunate enough to have her as a wife. This time I'm not just going to accuse you of trying to dabble with her, I'm going to give evidence that you did. And you won't get away with it. The Queen is one of my best friends and absolutely hates the idea of dabbling, so she'll be sure to convict all three of you."

"Adrian, what the Hell is going on?!" Rose exclaimed as she entered the room. When she saw me and the dabblers, she immediately paled. "Oh Sydney, no..."

"Adrian, they aren't worth it." I said. "Convict them... no kill..."

Then everything went black again.

**Adrian's POV**

I sat with Sydney in the hospital and refused to leave her side no matter what the doctor said.

"Adrian, for the last time, I don't care if you stay in Sydney's room. You just can't be on her bed with her." The doctor sighed in exasperation. "You might block her I.V."

"And for the last time, I'm not moving unless she wakes up and tells me to." I glared. "Now leave me _alone_."

I must have put some compulsion into my words by accident, because the doctor's eyes glazed over and she left the room. I sighed and made sure Sydney's head was lying on my chest. Rose said she would make sure that Wesley, Lars, and Brent would get convicted, but that I needed to stay with Sydney. I think she just wanted to make sure I didn't kill them. I couldn't blame her.

"Adrian..." Lissa entered the room. "Is she okay?"

"The doctor said she should be fine once she regains her normal blood levels." I said. "How are things on Rose's end?"

"She convinced Mikhail to get her five minutes alone with them in an interrogation room. When Mikhail opened the door five minutes later, they'd written out confessions and personalized apology letters. You should've seen the scared looks on their faces whenever Rose went anywhere near them." Lissa smiled slightly. "She really likes Sydney."

"Everyone does." I smiled.

"Yeah, and guess what? The branch of the Drozdov family that Mia's parents used to work for were Wesley and his parents, so she had her dad talk to his dad, and she bitched him out. Wesley cowered to Mia, and his dad cut off his cash flow. He doesn't even get an allowance like you did, he's just flat out broke." Lissa said.

"He deserves worse." I said.

Lissa looked like she was trying to cheer me up. "And Rose apparently threatened Lars. She mentioned how easy it was to kick Jesse Zeklos' ass, so it wouldn't be too much harder to kick Lars Zeklos' ass."

"Lissa, I get what you're trying to do and I appreciate it, but you can't really make me happy right now. I'm only going to be happy when Sydney wakes up and tells me she's okay." I suddenly pondered something. "Why isn't Sydney's family here? Her mom and Carly are still here, right?"

"They're outside. They know a lot has changed with Sydney, so they're not sure if Sydney will want to see them as much as she wants to see you." Lissa said.

"Of course she will! She really missed them in Palm Springs, and she was starting to think coming here would make them impossible to see." I said. "Send them in."

Lissa smiled as she exited the room and said something to Sydney's family. Carly and her mom entered the room and got chilled looks on their faces when they saw Sydney. It was one thing to hear about it, but it was something else entirely to see a family member in the hospital.

"What exactly happened?" Carly asked.

I frowned. This was one subject I didn't want to explain to them. "Sydney can explain it when she's conscious."

"Adrian..." The doctor from earlier walked in. "I was told to notify you when the drugs in Sydney's system wore off. She should be in normal sleep instead of drug-induced sleep now."

"Oh, thank God." I sighed with relief. "Okay, if I ignore you for a certain period of time, don't take it personally. I'm doing something to benefit Sydney."

Sydney's mom looked confused, but Carly nodded. She'd probably seen enough weird stuff today to handle anything I threw at her.

I relaxed into a meditative state and focused all my energy on Sydney. I established a dream connection pretty quickly, and we were standing in the Getty Center's garden again. Sydney was wearing the fiery heart T-shirt and a pair of red pants. I loved the fact that she wore more colors than usual lately.

"Adrian?" Sydney sighed with relief. She immediately hugged me and sighed with relief. "What happened?"

"I carried you to the hospital while Rose and the guardians took care of Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest." I said. "Your mom and sister are in the room with us, probably giving me strange looks as they try to figure out what I meant by ignoring them to help you."

Sydney smiled. "Thank you, Adrian. And I'm glad you didn't kill them. It's nice to know you'd kill for me, but it's even nicer to know you'd hold back for me."

"I'd do anything for you." I said.

"I know." Sydney smiled and gave me a kiss. "Now wake up and wake me up so we can kiss for real."


	7. The Past

**Chapter 7: The Past**

**Sydney's POV**

I woke up not too long after I'd told Adrian to wake me up.

"Adrian, you shouldn't wake a sleeping patient!" Carly exclaimed.

"I told him to wake me up." I said.

Mom looked confused. "How...?"

"It's magic. Adrian is a Spirit user who can walk in dreams." I coughed.

Adrian handed me some water to clear my throat. "There's never going to be a boring day with you, is there Sage?"

I grinned. "When have you ever had a boring day with me?"

"Never." Adrian snorted. "I just wanted to confirm if that was the way it would always be."

"I have a feeling it will." I said. "So, what happened to Dumb, Dumber, and Dumbest?"

"Locked up and receiving personal punishment from Rose and their family members." Adrian smiled.

"How are you two?" I looked at Mom and Carly.

"Are you really going to ask us that after what you've been through?" Mom scoffed.

"Yeah, I'd rather know how you're feeling." Carly agreed.

"Sydney's been through worse than this and insisted on talking about me. Regardless of how many times I tried to get information out of her." Adrian said.

"You don't have to know about every sordid detail of my emotions to understand how I feel. I just want to know how you feel. And as observant as I am, I'll still need you to tell me considering how socially inept I am." I said.

"Socially awkward? Maybe. But inept? I doubt it." Carly said. "Besides, the only important changes in my recent life involve you and Keith. I told Keith I'd forgive him, but that I'd never turn him in. That would give him a twisted sense of happiness."

"Why did you even say you'd forgive him? You have every right not to." Adrian said.

"Because apparently, _someone_ told him I'd at least consider it if he helped you find Sydney." Carly looked at Adrian pointedly.

"Yeah, but I didn't expect you to actually do it. That was a bluff." Adrian admitted.

"It doesn't matter. The point is that he calls me less frequently now, the only other reason to call being that he wants me to turn him in. And even if I wanted to, I think there's a statute of limitations." Carly shrugged.

"It's been a while since I looked at the law, but I don't think you've reached that limitation yet." I shrugged.

"What are you all talking about? What did Keith do to Carly?" Mom looked confused.

We all blanched as we realized we'd been discussing something Mom still didn't know about. That Keith raped Carly.

"We can talk about it another time, Mom." Carly said. "Sydney is our main focus right now."

Dimitri and Rose suddenly entered my hospital room with Lissa in tow.

"What's up, guys?" I asked.

"We'd like you to verify that you know these people before we let them in." Dimitri said.

He handed me an iPad that looked like it was showing live surveillance footage. It was the Court's front gate, and the people I saw were...

"The Merry Men and the detainees!" I exclaimed.

"The what?" Carly and Mom said.

"You've mentioned the Merry Men, but who are the detainees?" Lissa questioned.

"When Adrian and Marcus busted me out, we took all of the prisoners with us." I said. "But they're all supposed to be in hiding!"

"Do you want us to let them in?" Rose asked.

"Of course!" I unsuccessfully attempted to get up.

"Sydney, you're too weak. Let them come to you." Adrian said.

I ignored him and pulled out my I.V., got up, and hobbled out the door.

"Sydney." Adrian warned. "No."

"Adrian, I'm not going to sit in a hospital bed for this." I said.

I pulled off the hospital gown to find that my clothes hadn't been removed. That was a relief.

"She's a stubborn one, isn't she?" Rose laughed.

"Worse than you ever were. And anyone who knows you knows that's saying something." Adrian agreed.

I met Marcus' Merry Men and my fellow detainees on the Court's lawn.

"Sydney." Duncan hugged me.

"Nice to see you too, buddy." I croaked.

"What's up with you?" Duncan asked.

"I've been through a few more experiences since reeducation. I'll be fine." I smiled.

"So, how are you, Misty?" Marcus teased.

"You and Adrian really need to stop using that. It doesn't even sound like something I'd be named." I rolled my eyes.

"It's totally badass, and that makes it sound like you just based on that definition." Adrian said.

"How are all of you?" I changed the subject.

"I'm so glad you helped Adrian with that prison break. You helped me get Chantal back." Duncan pulled her close to him.

"It was just a lucky coincidence that she and I were on the same level." I waved off his praise.

"Regardless, thank you." Chantal hugged me before standing next to Duncan again.

Emma stepped forward. "I'm sorry we treated you like crap those first weeks after you got out of solitary. We just didn't know you yet, and-"

"I understand. It's okay." I said. "Besides, you helped me with a lot of my escape plans, and that more than makes up for any ill will."

"You're amazing, Sydney." Jonah gave me a hug.

"I guess you're okay." Amelia shrugged.

I smiled at all of them. Regardless of how often we got each other in trouble, we were always going to be friends. Then I frowned. "Emma, I'm sorry my last escape plan got you in trouble. You didn't even know anything, and they tortured you to get information out of me..."

"Don't worry about it. What you did was worthwhile and helped with Marcus' escape plan. We would've been knocked out and useless if you hadn't found the gas source and shut it off." Emma smiled warily. "Besides, you did what no one else could. You were the cause and advocate of the entire prison break."

"You make me sound like some kind of hero." I laughed nervously.

"You are to us." Emma said. "And you always will be."

"Sydney, I was wrong. I thought there was no one as badass as me. But you're more badass than I could ever be." Rose smiled. "You've changed _a lot_ since I first met you."

"When we first met, I was blindly following Alchemist orders." I laughed fondly. "Adrian and Jill and all of our friends back in Palm Springs might have gotten the last hitch in changing me, but you and Abe started that chain reaction."

Rose smiled proudly.

"Did I hear right? Did Sydney Sage_—_er Ivashkov_—_just thank me and say she owed me her most major life changes?" Abe strolled up.

"No, I just owe you the spark." I smirked. "And I no longer owe you, by the way. Especially since you didn't even tell me you were doing the thing I ended up eternally owing you for."

"Fair enough." Abe grinned.

"I can't hide all of you forever, but you're welcome to stay a little while. Any friend of Sydney's is a friend of mine." Lissa said.

"We just wanted to make sure Sydney was okay and... wait, did that Moroi guy say you were Sydney Ivashkov now?" Marcus looked at me in shock. "You're only gone a few days, and you've married Adrian?"

"It wasn't an impulse decision." I rolled my eyes. "It happened earlier than I expected because of the circumstances, but I've taken serious thought into it."

"I don't doubt it. In the time it takes me to make an impulse decision, you've thought out an Einstein level plan." Marcus said.

"Months worth of consideration, Marcus. Not just five minutes after Adrian asked me." I said.

"Well, that's something." Marcus smirked.

"Most of your decisions are just well thought out impulses, so I don't want to hear it." I grinned.

"Adrian!" A female voice screamed.

I turned to see a Moroi girl bounding up to Adrian and she hugged him tightly. I tried to repress what I thought was unfounded jealousy, but that was difficult when she kissed him.

Adrian pulled away in shock. "Nina, I told you I wasn't interested in you that way. I was just being you're friend."

"The girl you were hung up over obviously isn't coming back. If she couldn't get away from her family long enough to prove she loved you, she obviously doesn't." The girl named Nina said.

Anger flashed through me_—_and not at Adrian. This girl had no idea what I'd been through or how hard it was to escape from reeducation. She made it sound like I had a choice in the matter. I knew Adrian wouldn't have mentioned the full extent of our relationship to the Moroi, but how dare she make assumptions about me?

"Oh God, that's the insanely angry look she got right before she ripped one of my dolls' heads off and threw it at me. She's about to blow." Carly said.

"Nina, this is Sydney. She's the girl I was _hung up_ over. When I said her family was keeping her away from me, I meant that her dad put her in the Alchemist equivalent of a torture prison just because she loved me. I left Court to go bust her out and she became my wife as of yesterday." Adrian said nervously.

Nina's eyes widened in surprise as she stared at me. I stared back with a blank look on my face.

"What exactly is happening?" Dimitri whispered.

"Remember how antagonistic you were to Adrian? And how Tasha hated me enough to frame me for murder? Well, combine those two and multiply it by ten, and you'll have what Sydney's most likely feeling right now. And take into account that the only reason she isn't acting on all that hatred is because she has an unnatural level of restraint." Rose whispered back.

Nina and I just continued to stare at each other, neither one of us knowing what else to do in this situation. Adrian slowly stepped between us and prodded me back in the direction of the hospital.

"We wouldn't want your doctor to yell at me for letting you out of bed." Adrian laughed nervously. "You need more rest and fluids."

"Is she going to be okay?" I heard Lissa ask.

"The sad part is that as scary as Sydney is when she's angry enough to blow up, she's even worse when she doesn't say anything." Carly winced.

"Stop making assumptions about me! Why does everyone make assumptions about me? Nina assumed I had a choice and didn't choose Adrian, Sheridan assumed Pavlovian torture would make me sick every time I see a Moroi, the Alchemists assumed I was following orders, the Warriors assumed I'd give into their demands, my father and Zoe assumed I'd testify against my mom, Jill and our friends assumed I could fix all their problems, Keith assumed I was too weak to best him, Abe assumed I'd do whatever he told me to, Sonya assumed I'd freely give my blood, Adrian assumed I'd go against my beliefs as soon as he told me he loved me, Ms. Terwilliger assumed I'd start practicing magic after she tricked me into it, and everyone assumed my eating disorder was just cute and not at all a problem!" I ranted.

"That's the blow up." Carly said. "Now I'm just waiting for her to hit someone."

Rather than prove her point, I ran off crying. I was so wound up from everything I'd been through that it actually felt good to roam off somewhere unknown and just scream my lungs out. I could release all my fear and insecurity into a primal sound and watery eyes. I hadn't realized how weighed down I'd been or how much it hurt until the burden lifted itself out of my chest and stopped hurting me. Sobs wracked my body until there was nothing else to cry or scream about. I didn't even know where I was when I stopped. It looked like a garden full of trees and was probably hard to find if you didn't know where it was in advance.

"You know, I didn't realize how much we're actually alike. Aside from who brought us up, our race, and our intelligence, we're actually almost like the same person. At least the same personality. I think the only other thing that distincts you from me is your magic use and what you've been through." Rose pondered.

"How long have you been there?" I wiped my eyes.

"About as long as you have_—_which is about ten minutes. Adrian didn't have the lungs to keep up, but I did." Rose said. "I figured it would be best to let you get it out instead of holding it all in."

"Thanks." I said.

"Just so you know, regardless of how much you want to keep it in, you should really tell Adrian how you feel. Hiding my feelings didn't help Dimitri and I, but sharing them did. It was also good to get Dimitri to finally open up, but Adrian already seems completely open to you." Rose advised. "Just some friendly advice."

"Thank you, Rose." I hugged her. "You have no idea how much you've helped me in the past."

"Based on what you said and what I've seen of you lately, I think I have an idea." Rose smiled. "Now let's go find your boyfriend before he starts to worry more than he already is."


	8. Parents

**Chapter 8: Parents**

**Sydney's POV**

Rose and I finally found Adrian out of breath and lying on the grass with Dimitri sitting next to him.

"Women can be difficult to understand, but you'll figure it out." Dimitri said.

"Aw, men giving each other advice." Rose smirked. "That's always adorable."

Dimitri immediately looked up and smiled at Rose. Adrian looked up and relief crossed his features when he saw me.

"Where did you go?" Adrian finally started to control his breathing.

"I don't even know. I didn't pay attention to where I ran." I shrugged. "Why are you out of breath?"

"I didn't have the lungs to keep up, so I ran just about everywhere after I lost track of you." Adrian said. "Exercise sucks."

I helped him up. "What's in your hand?"

"My mom found me while I was looking for you. She said my dad invited us to dinner." Adrian handed me the paper.

It was an invitation that clearly had both of our names on it. "But your dad doesn't like me."

"And your mom's the only civil parent you have." Rose said. "She told me she didn't like the idea of us having more than a fling, but she was at least nice about it."

"Perhaps Nathan wants to latch onto Adrian and Sydney's fame. People have become more accepting of you two as they've seen you today." Dimitri shrugged. "If the old taboos are being ignored and you two are becoming popular, maybe he wants to latch onto it."

"That sounds like a real possibility." Adrian admitted. "Mom said that Sydney's family was invited too."

"I'm not sure I want to introduce my family to your dad. Your mom, maybe. But I don't like Nathan. I got a bad impression of him in Palm Springs too." I frowned.

"Yeah, but then you called Sonya so she'd convince Lissa to brag about me. It got me my allowance back." Adrian smiled fondly. "And you drank a slurpy."

"I'm guessing you knew I was lying about mine being sugar free?" I smirked.

"Duh. Slurpies are pure sugar." Adrian laughed. "I just wanted to take advantage of the moment."

"I'd actually kill for one now." I shrugged.

"I think they have them at the convenience store." Rose said. "But I haven't been there in a while."

"I'll investigate later." I smiled. "For now, I'll just get ready for the dinner. What time does it start?"

"In an hour." Adrian smirked.

"Shit." I said. "Do I have to wear a dress?"

"No. Besides, the only one you own is your wedding dress, and I don't think he wants to see you in that again." Adrian smiled. "Come on, let's get the other Sages."

We'd notified Carly and my mom and made it to the Ivashkov residence within the hour before dinner started. Hopper was with me in statue form.

"Adrian!" His mother hugged him.

"You were here early?" Adrian asked.

"I've been getting my things." Daniella shrugged.

"Adrian." Nathan nodded. "Sydney."

"Mr. Ivashkov." I greeted.

"You can call me Nathan." He said.

"I'd rather use professional terms." I said.

"You called me Nathan in California." He reminded me.

"That's when I gave you a chance to be a civil person. Making Adrian cry and downplaying everything he does clearly shows how uncivil you are. You only treated him kindly after that because I called in a favor to have the Queen brag about him to you." I reminded him.

He looked shocked at my words, but he was smart enough to stay silent. In fact, the only one who didn't seem shocked at my words was Adrian. He knew it was the truth and that I was no longer going to pretend with people. I'd just start telling them I hated them—or I'd just directly imply it.

"So, you invited us to dinner. Why?" Adrian drew the attention away from me.

"I can't invite my new and old family for dinner?" Nathan asked.

"Not when you hate three of us and don't know the other two." Adrian pointed out.

"Who said I hated any of you?" Nathan scoffed.

"You're divorcing me." Daniella pointed out.

"You're disowning me." Adrian reminded him.

"You said my marriage to Adrian was an abomination and a sham." I added.

"Shall we go into the dining room?" Nathan recomposed himself.

"You really married into a great family." Carly giggled sarcastically.

"As if ours is better." I whispered back with a smirk.

When we entered the dining room, all humor vanished. My mother Carly weren't the only members of my family that had been invited. My father and Zoe were staring back at us.

"You're not supposed to be here." I said.

"The Queen said we couldn't come back unless we stopped being hostile and trying to take you. I'm just here to meet my new... family." My father obviously had a hard time associating the Ivashkovs as his family.

"Let me rephrase; I never want to see your face ever again. Zoe can stay, but I don't want you here." I said.

"Funny how you want me to leave, but you'll let Zoe stay. She's the one who betrayed you by calling to report your activities. It's her fault, not mine." My father said.

Zoe bowed her head in shame as Carly and Mom gasped.

"Zoe was misguided. She didn't know better. You, however, arrested me and slapped me knowing full well what that meant. By comparison, Zoe's a saint." I said.

"More like Judas." My father commented.

Zoe looked extremely hurt at that.

"Funny, one daughter wants nothing to do with you, another is married to a vampire, and you're basically calling the one that's loyal to you the devil's advocate. You're just a great parent, aren't you?" I remarked.

He blanched as he realized how good of a comeback that was and that he'd just insulted his last hope at a reputation. "I apologize, Zoe."

Zoe remained silent, obviously afraid to show her emotions.

"Nathan, what is this?" Daniella asked warily.

"We're just getting to know each other better. Understanding our differences." Nathan said.

That was an indirect way of saying this was an intervention. They were going to try to convince us our marriage was a sham in a peaceful, yet antagonistic way.

"I'd like to see Zoe alone for a moment." I grabbed her arm and pulled her into the hallway.

Oddly, no one tried to stop me.

"What?" Zoe's eyes were filled with tears.

I pulled her close for a hug. "You're nothing like Judas. You just lost sight of what was right because you believed Dad would lead you down the right path. He failed. This is his failure, not yours."

"I don't want to leave you again, please." Zoe hugged me tighter as she sobbed. "I don't know if I'll ever get used to vampires, but I'd do anything to be with you. Please don't leave me again."

I shushed her and stroked her back. My poor sister had been through more than a girl her age—or any other age—should. I just hoped to God that she'd never experience the horrible things I had. Carly had walked out of the dining room and she came to hug the two of us. She was strategically ignoring what our father had revealed about Zoe.

"Bravo." Clapping was suddenly in the background.

I knew that voice. It was the most horrible thing in the world to me.

"You know, it's funny how they say the apple never falls far from the tree. It obviously did in this case—all three times." Sheridan said.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"You made a fool out of me, Sydney Sage. Never again." Sheridan said.

"Ivashkov. My name is Sydney Ivashkov. And you can't touch me." I said.

"Not yet, but soon." Sheridan smiled that sweet, yet evil smile. "Jared!"

My father immediately came into the room, Adrian in tow. Adrian had known who the voice belonged to before coming out, but he still paled when he saw Sheridan.

"I'm still working on getting her." My father said.

"It doesn't matter for now. Let's go." Sheridan said. "Zoe?"

"Please don't make me leave..." Zoe whispered.

"Now." Sheridan said. "I'm your superior in multiple senses."

"Multiple..." I started to question.

I cut myself off as I saw Sheridan pull my father in for a kiss. The combination of seeing Sheridan—my torturer—with my father and seeing my father with anyone other than my mother made me sick. And not just figuratively. I literally vomited—right on the Ivaskovs' floor.

"Sydney!" Carly, Zoe, and Adrian immediately reacted.

My mother suddenly came into the room. "What wrong? What's going..."

She cut herself off as she saw the same sight I did. But instead of vomiting, she laughed. "I always said that if you weren't happy with me you should just marry your work. Looks like you took me seriously."

"Perhaps I should get your favorite coffee, huh Sydney?" Sheridan smirked as she looked down at my vomit.

That was what snapped me. I lunged for her and we landed on the ground, me on top of her. As I visualized all the torture she'd put me through, I started trying to choke her.

"Sydney, it's not worth it!" Carly tried to pull me off. "Forget about Dad!"

"Carly, that's not why she's choking Sheridan." Adrian tried to pull me off too.

I refused to release my grip and started crying my eyes out. "I only defended the Dhampirs, and you forced me to look at pictures of Moroi while you gave me a drug that made me feel sick! I even started lying so I could get through the torture faster, and then you showed me Adrian and Jill! Then you finally released me and let me vomit, and after that you brought my favorite foods because you knew my stomach wouldn't be able to handle it!"

Carly stopped trying to pull me off as soon as she heard me say that. She might have actually helped me if our Mom weren't watching.

"And before that you were the voice that taunted me in my cell for three months! Three months of darkness, taunting, filth, and being drugged... And you purposely told the detainees what I did to get into reeducation so they'd stay away from me. I could've handled it if they just stayed away from me and shot me dirty looks, but I never expected to be called a slut and a vamp whore..." I ranted.

My mother looked sad and Adrian just barely loosened his grip on me.

"You even stuck my arm in some kind of liquid that burnt me without actually damaging my flesh! You tortured me on an electric table until you finally figured out I wasn't going to break and then tortured Emma because you thought torturing a friend would work better. Then you put me back on the electric table for God only knows how long before Adrian found me. If it weren't for my magic use, you'd have been able to turn me into a re-inked robot. And remember that cross you tempted me with? The one you wore to torment me? It was made by Adrian! You wore a vampire's cross!" I exclaimed.

Sheridan had a horrified look at that.

"And now you're taunting me and doing God only knows what with my father? What kind of sick bitch are you?! You tortured me just because I loved him... Just because I loved Adrian..." I released Sheridan and let my body wrack with sobs of despair.

Sheridan scurried over to my father, clenching her throat where I'd choked her. "You're insane!"

"You're insane! And if you don't leave now, I'm going to take back my policy on not hitting women!" Adrian threatened.

For a second, my reality seemed false. I felt like I was back in reeducation.

"Sydney." Sheridan grinned hellishly. "Let's go."

"No..." I murmured.

"Let's go, Sydney." Sheridan repeated.

As she grabbed me, I screamed, "No! Don't touch me!"

Adrian flinched. As my world came back into focus, I realized it had been Adrian saying we should go, not Sheridan.

"I'm so sorry, Adrian." I grasped him into a hug.

"Don't ever apologize for your dad's stupidity or Sheridan's bitchiness." Adrian said. "You're okay now."

I leaned into Adrian's chest, not caring that there were other people there.

"Who vomited on my floor?!" Nathan exclaimed.

"The dog." Adrian quipped.

"We don't have a dog!" Nathan said.

"That's nice." Adrian helped me up. "You know what, Dad? I'm leaving and never coming back. I'm sick of you treating us like shit, and you crossed the line when you invited the Alchemists here. This is the point of no return. As of now, you no longer have a son."

"Adrian, don't..." I started to protest.

"Sydney, it's not just what he does to you. He does the same thing to everyone around him, and I'm sick of it. And now that my mom and I are gone, he's slowly going to realize that we were the only ones who ever gave a damn about him—all of his 'friends' are going to disappear." Adrian clasped my hands. "You were right when you said I didn't need his approval. Now, let's go."

I let Adrian lead me out of the Ivashkov residence and back to our place. Mom and Carly followed, concerned looks on their faces.

"You can stay with us." I said. "But since Daniella Ivashkov is in the second bedroom, someone has to sleep on the couch."

"I'll sleep on the couch." Adrian said. "Share the bed with your mom and sister."

"Are you sure about that?" I asked warily.

I actually wanted to fall asleep next to Adrian. It was less scary if I had him to ward off my bad dreams.

"Yeah, I'm sure." Adrian decided. "Besides, we don't have to go to bed yet."

Carly and Mom looked exhausted.

"I think they're still on a human schedule, Adrian." I said.

It was just before dawn for humans, but just after dinner for vampires. They'd stayed up all night so they could spend time with me.

"Fair point, but I haven't gotten to know them very well yet." Adrian said. "They can go to bed after."

"He's offering us his bed, I think the least we can do is get to know him better." Carly shrugged.

"She's right." Mom agreed.

So we sat down on the couch—me on Adrian's lap—and talked.

"Sydney tells me you're a mechanic. I guess that's why she can change a tire in ten minutes while speaking Greek." Adrian smiled.

"Five." I corrected.

"You took fifteen minutes to fix Inez's flat tire without speaking Greek. Doing it in ten while speaking Greek is an exaggerated compliment." Adrian smirked.

"I've done it in five. Inez's car was just a special case." I argued.

"Uh-huh." Adrian countered.

"You two are so cute." Mom laughed. "And yes, I did teach her how to change a tire."

"You even laugh like her." Adrian shook his head. "And you're also the reason she loves my car."

"I miss the Ivashkinator." I sighed. "Too bad we had to ditch it."

"That reminds me..." Adrian barely contained his grin.

"What?" I asked.

"Lissa had it retrieved earlier today. It's in Court's parking gargage." Adrian smirked.

"Yes!" I exclaimed.

"What kind of car do you have?" Mom asked.

"It's probably classic, and that's all that counts with Sydney." Carly smirked.

"I had such a nice car in Russia too. And in St. Louis. But I ended up leaving them behind for Rose." I sighed.

"People will do anything for Rose. She has a really magnetic personality. Everyone loves a smartass who gets in trouble—for good or bad reasons—on a regular basis. And because she's pretty." Adrian said.

"Very true." I admitted. "Those are my favorite kinds of book characters."

"I still like you better." Adrian poked me.

"I know. Because if you didn't, I'd have slapped you for calling Rose pretty." I smirked.

"Jealous type, eh?" Adrian teased.

"Considering the fact that she's your ex-girlfriend and you were still moping about her when I first met you, I think I'm entitled to it. Even if she is my friend." I said.

"You're married to your friend's ex-boyfriend?" Carly snorted.

"I thought he was cute when he was still her boyfriend. Besides, it's not like I stole him from her." I shrugged.

"True. I didn't really get to know Sydney until her assignment in Palm Springs. And that was way after I stopped dating Rose." Adrian said. "Besides, Rose was the one who encouraged me to move on."

"Well, when you have a boyfriend like that guy she's with, you don't really care who your ex-boyfriend's dating." Carly smirked.

"See?! Why do all women like Belikov?" Adrian said.

"Because he's hot and has an accent." I shrugged.

"You've been affected too?" Adrian scoffed.

"Obviously not by much. I'm married to you, aren't I?" I teased. "Besides, I just said Dimitri was hot. That doesn't mean I'd date him."

"But when a guy says a girl is pretty, that means he's smitten?" Adrian snorted.

"Female logic. You can't argue with it because it makes no sense to you." I tapped my head.

We all laughed and had a good time the rest of the night. At least some of my happiness was salvaged.


	9. Friendship

**Chapter 9: Friendship**

**Adrian's POV**

I woke up to the sounds of female giggling. But it wasn't Sydney's. I opened my eyes to find Sydney's mom and Carly giggling. I didn't understand why at first, but then I figured it out. Sydney was sleeping next to me on the couch.

"Well, how did you get here?" I brushed Sydney's hair out of her face.

"We fell asleep with her next to us on the bed, and when she was gone this morning, we found her lying next to you." Sydney's mom said.

"I'm thinking she either came out here because she missed you or she sleep walked." Carly smirked.

"Has Sydney ever sleep walked before?" I asked.

"She used to do it occasionally. We used to share a room, so when she finally got her own room, she started sleep walking into my room. She also did it a few times to Zoe." Carly laughed. "She'd even sleep walk her way into our parents' room and sleep with Mom when Dad was gone..." Carly frowned.

"What?" I asked.

"She actually sleep walked a lot to sleep next to Dad. Sydney was almost as big of a daddy's girl as Zoe when she was younger. I think that's why she volunteered to be the family Alchemist at first, and then protecting Zoe was a reason that got added in later." Carly said.

"Sydney was a daddy's girl?" How could you be a daddy's girl to an emotionally unavailable dad? "She seems more like a mommy's girl to me."

"Oh don't get me wrong, Sydney's always loved our mom. We knew who the more emotionally available parent is. But Dad... Dad wasn't always mean and cold. He was actually fun. He used to take us to stuff like the zoo and fish aquariums. But around the time she turned six... he just stopped being fun. He used to be able to make Sydney laugh hysterically, but then one day he was so mean he made her cry." Carly said. "That's about the time Sydney started hiding her emotions. If she thought something was funny, she'd try to hide her smile. When she was sad, she'd suck it up until she was alone to cry."

"Yeah, that's actually what she was like when I first met her. Then she warmed up to us and slowly started showing more emotion." I admitted.

Rapid knocking suddenly came from the door. "Open the door, pretty boy!"

"Angeline?" I recognized her voice.

Sydney started to stir, but you could tell she was still too tired to wake up without more prodding. I moved her in a way that wouldn't wake her up as I got up to answer the door. As soon as I opened it, Angeline grabbed me into a hug. Then she punched my arm.

"Ow." I said.

"You ditched Eddie, got into an Alchemist chase to Las Vegas, got married to Sydney, and didn't even tell us!" Angeline exclaimed.

"I assume you're mad because we didn't tell you?" I sighed.

"No, I'm mad because you didn't bring me with you!" Angeline frowned.

"Sorry, I couldn't keep her away." Rose said.

"And why didn't you mention knowing Rose! I know Sydney knows Rose, but I didn't know you did." Angeline said.

"I would've thought Dimitri being in Palm Springs would be a tip off." I shrugged. "Wait, how exactly do you know Rose and Sydney? They've mentioned meeting you before Palm Springs, and that's why you were assigned to guard Jill, but Sydney's never mentioned how you guys met."

"My brother was going to marry Rose, and I challenged her to prove her worth." Angeline grinned. "I like her."

"Another guy, really?" I rolled my eyes.

"I wasn't going to marry him! I was just being friendly, and he took that as some romantic gesture! I was about as friendly with him as I am with Eddie." Rose scoffed. "But because Joshua doesn't understand subtext, he probably thinks I'm coming back."

"He believes you'll be back within the next few years and want to be his second wife." Angeline confirmed.

"Second? Did he get one after I left?" Rose asked.

"Yes. Too bad you didn't marry him. You're a worthy opponent and I like you. And I'll still accept you if you change your mind, but the honor of being the first wife is the greatest." Angeline said.

"Let's talk about your love life, Angeline." I spared Rose from her agony. "How's Trey?"

Angeline brightened. "Great. Well... except for looking for Jill."

"You have a boyfriend?" Rose snorted.

"Even better, he was a Warrior of Light when they met. But he became really good friends with Sydney and really liked Angeline, so he quit altogether." I smirked. "He actually helped me get Sydney out of reeducation."

"You guys are such extreme mirror versions of my life. It's kind of creepy." Rose said.

"Maybe you're the mirror of our lives." I teased.

"I experienced it first." Rose pointed out.

"And most of us were along for the ride." Sydney said.

I turned to see that she was sitting up and awake. "Good morning, sleep walker."

Sydney rolled her eyes. "They told you, huh?"

"Yeah. And I think it's kind of cute. Did you ever do that when you were rooming with Jill?" I smirked.

"No. And she'd probably have told you if I did." Sydney said. "Speaking of which, is there any news on her?"

"No. We still don't have enough information, and I can't go because I have to protect Lissa." Rose frowned.

"And we can't go because we'll be hunted like dogs if we do." I said. "I wish there was something I could do, but the bond only goes one way."

"Well, Inez is ready any time Sydney is for tracking spells, and Mark and Oksana just got here from Baia." Rose said. "You could still help."

"I'll go to Inez. You go to Mark and Oksana." Sydney said as she got up.

She winced and grabbed her neck. There were still bite marks from where the dabblers had bit her, and they were probably sore.

"Can I heal it? Or are you going to flinch?" I asked.

Sydney rolled her eyes. "Adrian, I think we're way past the point of my fear of magic. Just do it."

I grinned and touched her neck, healing it. "I'm glad. I was starting to get nervous that you'd never get over the whole magic thing, even with your witch stuff. You really hated it when we first got to know each other."

"How bad?" Rose asked.

"I felt like I was being suffocated in Spirit dreams, yelled at Jill when she played with water magic, and wouldn't let Adrian heal me even after the Strigoi attack." Sydney said. "It was a scary and foreign concept to me. I usually mentally recite facts when I'm nervous, so something that has no proven facts made me really nervous."

"But you could fight off a Strigoi for me in Russia?" Rose scoffed.

"They were still evil creatures to me, but I knew more about them than I did magic. Besides, I only hit it over the back once and then you did the rest. I figured my best chance for survival was to make sure you survived." Sydney said.

"Are you saying you would've let me die if I'd been useless in a fight?" Rose questioned.

"Back then, yes. Now, I'd save you just because you're my friend." Sydney smirked.

"That's comforting." Rose rolled her eyes.

"You're all strange." Angeline interjected.

"So, where's the rest of the gang? Angeline, Sydney, and I are here, so that just leaves Eddie, Neil, and Trey." I said.

"Neil's looking for some girl named Nina, Trey is on his way back from getting coffee, and Eddie's in a bar." Angeline said.

"A bar?" Sydney asked.

"He's really upset about Jill..." Angeline didn't have to explain that.

"Why didn't you say anything?!" Rose exclaimed. "We can't let Eddie drink his pain away!"

Sydney obviously had the same idea, because she was already sprinting out the door. Then she came back. "Which bar?"

"The one closest to Court's entrance." Angeline bit her lip.

Sydney took off again with Rose and I following her.

**Sydney's POV**

I finally found the bar Eddie was in and spotted him at a table. It looked like he was already drunk, but I had to stop him before he got even worse.

"Eddie?" I tried to get his attention when I got to his table.

"Sydney?" Eddie was very obviously drunk. "Where's Adrian?"

"Around. What are you doing to yourself, Eddie?" I said.

"I was supposed to protect her, and now she's gone." Eddie slurred.

"Oh, Eddie. It's not your fault, you have to know that." I grabbed his hand.

"I was her guardian. I was just supposed to make sure she was okay, and I failed." Eddie was crying.

"Eddie, you can still protect her. She's still alive, and you can help us search for her. But you can't be drunk. You're useless as a drunk, and Jill would be disappointed if she knew you were drinking instead of looking for her. Be a real man and look for her." I had to give Eddie some tough love.

I also had to whisper, just so no one would know Jill was missing. That had to stay a secret until after we found her or whenever the family law passed.

"I miss her so much, Sydney." Eddie sobbed into my chest as he hugged me.

"I know." I stroked his head. "She was my friend, and much more than that to you. But as long as you can be sober and looking for her, you'll be doing your job and she'll never be disappointed in you."

"Oh, Eddie." Rose finally caught up to me. "I know it's hard, but I promise we'll find her."

"You'd know how hard this is, Rose." Eddie sniffled.

"That's right, because Lissa's gone missing before too." Rose said.

"No, that's not what I meant. This would've been how you felt when Dimitri first went missing, just before you figured out he was a Strigoi." Eddie said.

"Eddie, how could this be the same? Jill is your friend, Dimitri was and is my boyfriend." Rose said.

"Jill may not have been my girlfriend, but she did love me that way. And I loved her too." Eddie heaved.

Rose looked shocked, but then her gaze turned sympathetic. "How long?"

"I don't know how long for her, but it was a while for me. Since before we graduated the Academy." Eddie sniffled.

"Oh, Eddie." Rose pulled him in for a hug. "You knew, didn't you Sydney?"

"It wasn't hard to tell with Eddie. It took a little longer to tell with Jill. She's actually good at hiding her emotions, plus she seemed like she had a crush on Adrian, and then there was the times when she tried dating Lee and Micah. But once I figured it out, it all made more sense." I admitted.

"There you are, Rose! Can you-" Lissa cut herself off. "Eddie? Are you okay?"

Eddie suddenly looked up. He looked confused at first, but then something changed in his eyes. He was giving Lissa the same look he used to give Jill—the look of love. He sprang forward and kissed her.

Lissa was too shocked to do anything at first, but then she pushed him away. "Eddie, what are you doing?"

"Lissa?" Eddie paled. "You and Jill look a lot alike..."

"We do?" Lissa asked.

"The only differences are your age and hair color." I pointed out.

"Well, what does that have to do with Eddie kissing me?" Lissa questioned.

"I love her." Eddie said.

Lissa looked as shocked as Rose had, but she got a sympathetic look too. "I'm sorry Eddie. This has to be hard if you really love her, but I promise I'm doing everything I can to look for her."

"But what can I do? I could work with evidence, but there's no evidence of how Jill disappeared!" Eddie whispered vehemently.

"Actually, I called some friends of mine and Sydney's, and they might be able to help if we can establish a good connection. Whatever evidence we find at that point will be what you can go on." Rose said. "I promise we'll find Jill."

"We will." Adrian panted, finally catching up to us. "And when we find the bastards who took her, you and I will have first dibs on revenge."

"Yeah..." Eddie looked dizzy.

"Eddie?" I said.

Eddie suddenly fell over, but Rose and Adrian caught him.

"God, he hasn't been this drunk since before we ran away from the Academy." Rose grunted as she leaned Eddie over the table.

"Have you noticed we all tend to fall in love with each other? We're all part of the same group of friends—directly or indirectly—and we pair off with each other. Sydney and Adrian. Christian and I. You and Dimitri. Neil and Olive. Sonya and Mikhail. And now Eddie and Jill." Lissa said.

"That's not even counting Angeline and Trey." Adrian snorted.

"Or Wolfe and Ms. Terwilliger." I smirked.

"That was just perfect." Adrian smirked back.

"Angeline has a boyfriend?" Lissa asked.

"Why are Angeline and Trey obvious to us, but hidden to everyone at Court? And then it was the other way around with us. Only Jill knew for the longest time, and no one at Court guessed it except Sonya." I said.

"Sonya knew? Damn, I wish I'd badgered her for more details about you two." Rose said.

"She didn't know the full extent. Just that we were attracted to each other." I shrugged.

"Alright, I'm going to take Eddie to get his room here back. If you want to meet Mark and Oksana, follow me Adrian." Rose said.

"You just want me to help you carry Castille." Adrian snorted.

"No, that's just a bonus." Rose smirked. "See what you can find out from Inez, Sydney."

"Believe me, I will." I said.

Adrian and Rose lifted Eddie to drag him off to his room while Lissa followed. I headed off to find Inez. She was still with Yeva trying to understand Alicia.

"Inez?" I stepped forward.

"Oh good, you're alright. I can get to work on some spells with you any time you want to start." Inez said.

"Hello Sydney." Ms. Terwilliger hugged me.

"Hi Jackie." I sighed as I hugged her back.

"Did you just call me Jackie instead of Ms. Terwilliger?" Ms. Terwilliger smirked.

"N-no, ma'am." I recomposed myself.

"Too bad. I kind of liked it." She smiled.

"How is Roza?" Yeva asked.

"I thought only Dimitri called Rose Roza." I smiled.

"So? Roza is how you say Rose in Russian, and I prefer Russian. Besides, I actually like Rose, contrary to her beliefs." Yeva scoffed.

"Then why do you constantly tease her?" I asked.

"Don't all in-laws do that? Besides, I asked Rose for her stake to mix the ingredients just to be nice. Her blood wasn't even necessary, but I figured she'd feel more included, and it was better to be safe than sorry." Yeva smirked. "But don't tell Roza I said that. Or that I call her Roza."

"I think she'd be happy if I told her. She actually seems to want your approval—and you should be honored considering how rarely she wants approval." I said.

"I'll tell her in my own way later." Yeva chuckled.

"Let's try some spells. Tell me which ones you did so we can cross them off the list of spells we need to try." Inez said.

"I've tried all of the basic ones I know of and done multiple advanced spells." I said.

"We'll have to cross all of the basic ones off the list if even some of the advanced spells didn't work. Now tell me which advanced ones you tried so we can cross them off the list." Inez said.

I listed the few advanced spells I'd tried and Inez nodded along.

"That crosses off a lot of spells." Ms Terwilliger frowned.

"It does. But there is a spell... I don't usually suggest this one, but it might be helpful. Is there anyone who loves her, like a boyfriend?" Inez asked.

"Yes." I said automatically.

"Are you sure he loves her? Or is it just infatuation?" Inez questioned.

"I'm sure it's love. If you've seen them together or heard him talk about her, you'd have no doubt." I insisted.

"And she has a bond mate, correct?" Inez nodded.

"Adrian. But their connection is oriented towards her feeling him, not the other way around." I said.

"It doesn't matter which way the bond goes." Inez waved that off. "Get them both here and we'll easily be able to find her. It takes a lot of cloaking to hide someone from the spell I'm thinking of."

"What kind of spell is it?" I asked.

"A spell to call a lost love. It's powerful enough to bring back the deceased's ghost, so it would be very powerful in tracking a live person." Inez said.

"It requires a lot of power, doesn't it?" I asked.

"It does, but if you and Jaclyn help me, it shouldn't be too bad." Inez admitted.

"Jill's boyfriend is drunk right now, and Adrian is working with some other Shadow Kissed people to track her with Spirit. They can apparently make the bond go the other way if they're successful." I said. "We can't do the spell right now."

"If the Shadow Kissed people can do that, then it might be easier to find her. I'd like to witness this. And make sure the boyfriend is present. It would be best to sober him up, but him knowing what information the bond mate gathers would be useful when the time cones to cast the spell." Inez said.

"Okay, then follow me. I think they're with the Queen right now." I said.

**Adrian's POV**

Sydney had called ahead saying we should have Eddie with us and that we needed to wait for her before we started anything. I distracted myself during the wait by watching Lissa.

Lissa might have been able to pretend with everyone else, but I knew Jill's disappearance was affecting her. She was ringing her hands nervously and showed multiple other signs of worry. You could tell she was also excited though—Mark and Oksana might actually be able to help us find her sister.

A lot of people—including Jill—had seemed unsure of whether Lissa actually loved Jill or was just using her to her advantage as Queen. Even Rose had once questioned the same thing, but we all knew for sure that Lissa loved Jill after Jill had gone missing. There may have been things about Jill's disappearance that caused stress, but the fact that Jill was gone seemed to worry Lissa the most. She may not have made friends with Jill as quickly as Rose and I had, and her shock over Jill being her sister hadn't helped the process, but Lissa had shown many signs of caring about Jill. It was just too bad that Jill herself hadn't believed that.

"Why are you staring at me?" Lissa asked.

"Sorry, I was just thinking of Jailbait and well... Castille was right about you looking like her." I admitted.

Eddie was being forced to drink water by Rose.

"I'm not thirsty." Eddie protested.

"It will help you sober up faster, and we need you to be sober when we look for Jill!" Rose snapped. "Now drink the damn water."

"God, you haven't been this snappy since Dimitri went missing." Eddie finally consented to drinking water.

Lissa sighed. "Do I really look that much like Jill?"

"To be honest, the biggest difference is your hair. We probably could've noticed Jill was your sister sooner if we'd looked at her features instead of focusing on her name." I said.

"If you'd focused on her features, she would've lived up to the nickname Jailbait." Lissa smirked.

"Seriously though, she looks a lot like the pictures I've seen of your dad." I said.

Lissa frowned. "You know, I don't actually resent Jill. I'm glad I have another sibling—and that she's likeable. What I resent is what my father did to make her my sibling. He could have just as easily had another child with my mother... but he slept with Jill's instead..."

"Your dad might have been stupid when it came to his love life, but you know you can't hate him, right? I mean, he was still a good dad." I said. "My dad stayed faithful to my mom, but he's the worst dad ever. I'd rather have a good dad that cheats than a jackass who stays faithful."

"I wish my father had been both—faithful and good. And I don't hate him because even though he did it in a stupid way, he at least gave me another sibling. I've always wanted a sister, and I was just lucky to have Rose supplement that role." Lissa sighed.

"I love you too, Liss." Rose said.

"I wish I had siblings in general. I think the closest I'm getting to that is you and Castille." I smirked.

"Hey, what about me?" Rose scoffed.

"I don't count you. That would be like admitting incest." I said.

Rose stuck her tongue out at me, but her silence told me she agreed.

"Alright, you can start now." Inez waltzed in.

"Yeva." Oksana hugged her.

"Oksana." Yeva greeted. "Mark."

"Hello Yeva." Mark hugged her.

"Roza." Yeva reluctantly hugged Rose.

Rose looked dumbfounded and Dimitri smirked.

"What do we need to do?" Jackie asked.

"Adrian is the primary person we need. The rest of you are just her for viewing." Oksana said. "Oh, hello Sydney!"

"Hello Mark. Oksana." Sydney nodded and stood next to me.

"Okay Adrian, take some advice from a pro." Rose joked. "When Oksana reaches into your mind, be as compliant as possible. And focus on Jill. It was probably easier for me since I could already feel Lissa, but I had to put some work into talking too. You have to do double the work, which means double the focus."

"Got it." I said. "I'm better at focusing than you guys think."

"I know." Rose and Sydney said simultaneously.

They shook their heads and recomposed themselves. Having my ex-girlfriend and my wife be friends could be pretty weird sometimes.

"Let's try this." Oksana grabbed my hands.

I nodded and focused as hard as possible on Jill. I could feel a tingling in my brain, but Rose had mentioned it as something that signaled that Oksana was reading my mind. I suddenly went through my memories of Jill. Nicknaming her Jailbait. Becoming Shadow Kissed. Getting to Palm Springs. Finding out that my alcohol use was affecting Jill. Talking about Sydney. Her date with Lee. Seeing her fashion show. The Strigoi attack. Talking about Micah. Saying she could see when I was with Sydney. Hearing about how she'd stare at Sydney whenever I was thinking about her. Convincing me to go for Sydney. Talking about Eddie. Talking about Neil. Our mutual devastation when Sydney went missing. Her organizing our getaway from the Alchemists. When I heard she was missing...

"Adrian." Oksana tried to get my attention. "You need to focus."

"What?" My voice cracked.

I'd been crying.

"I know Jill being gone has affected you, but you have to focus. And stop letting memories of talking to her about Sydney interfere. It distracts you even more." Oksana advised.

"Huh?" Sydney was confused.

"He talked to his bond mate about you a lot." Oksana said. "But his memories of talking to her about that are leading him to thoughts of you, which distracts him. And his thoughts of discussing Jill's romantic interests—including Eddie—aren't helping either."

"What romantic interests?" Lissa asked. "Just knowing that she liked Eddie was surprising enough."

"Jill tried dating Clarence's son—Lee. But she got kind of turned off when she found out he was murdering people in the hopes of becoming Strigoi again and then awakening her as his bride." I said. "Plus, he was apparently older than he looked, and we already thought he was nineteen."

"That explains why she seemed more upset than the rest of you." Dimitri said.

"And she tried to have dates on occasion with her human friend, Micah. But she didn't really like him, and he was getting too close to finding out about us, so she dumped him." I added.

"Wow, Jailbait dumped somebody. She gets major maturity points for that." Rose laughed halfheartedly.

"Plus, she pretended to like Neil so she could focus on something other than Eddie." I smirked.

"Poor Neil. Jill's starting to sound like a player." Rose said.

"Psh, Neil was completely oblivious. Angeline was pretending she liked him too, but he didn't think either of them liked him that way. He probably thought they were sincerely interested in his ridiculous stories." Eddie scoffed.

"Exactly." I agreed.

"Adrian, we can talk about Jill's love life later, let's focus on finding her for now." Sydney suggested.

I smirked. "You just don't want me to talk about the time you interfered with whether she should date Neil or Lee..."

"Adrian!" Sydney snapped. "Focus."

I took a deep breath and grabbed Oksana's hands again. She entered my mind again as I pictured just one memory of Jill. I was remembering when she was in the fashion show. Her mask and dress made her look beautiful, as well as the smile that lit her features. Then I remembered the jade green eyes that were under the mask, and the smile that clearly showed her fangs when she smiled open mouthed.

Then I was taken somewhere else. I was in a dark cell. It was cold and wet, and I shivered uncomfortably. But I wasn't the one who was there. This was Jill. One of the most horrifying parts of what I was seeing was that when Jill shifted, I realized she was naked.

"Oh my God, what are they doing to her?!" I exclaimed out loud.

"What? What's going on?" Rose asked.

"_Eddie will come for me. I know he will._" Jill thought.

"Adrian?" Sydney asked.

"You know what you have to say, Jill." A voice said.

Jill was afraid. Then she complied with the voice. "I have sinned against God and have no soul. I am ready to have the darkness purged."

"What is this?" Oksana asked. "Where is she?"

The room was suddenly flooded with light and a familiar face appeared at the door.

"Come with me, abomination." Sheridan said.

Jill whimpered and got up to follow Sheridan. Now that I'd gotten a better glance at Jill, she hadn't become as skinny or dirty as what Sydney had—probably since she'd only been gone a few days.

"_Jill_." I aimed my thoughts at her.

"_Adrian_?" Jill thought.

"_Play along with Sheridan, but don't give in. We're going to save you._" I responded.

"_You... you are_?" Jill asked.

"_You've only been gone a few days. We've all been worried sick about you—especially Eddie._" I confirmed.

"_Please help me. Save me, Adrian._" Jill begged.

"_I promise I will. Do you know if you're in Death Valley? Or did they send you somewhere else?_" I replied.

"_I don't know where I am. I just woke up in this cell. But before they drugged me, someone mentioned something about how the reeducation center in Death Valley was burned down after you guys left. It's unusable_." Jill informed me. "_Please hurry, Adrian."_

_"I promise I will."_ I said.

"Adrian? What's going on?" Lissa sounded panicky.

My connection to Jill broke and I was looking at everyone else again.

"Adrian... what was that?" Oksana asked.

"You seemed to recognize it." Mark said.

"Jill... she's in reeducation. The Alchemists have her." I said.


	10. Tracking Spell

**Chapter 10: Tracking Spell**

**Sydney's POV**

"They wouldn't put Jill in reeducation. Reeducation is to help Alchemists realize relations with vampires are wrong—friendly or otherwise. Jill's a vampire, so she can't be saved according to them." Lissa protested.

"But what if they're trying to use her as a weapon against us? Maybe they'll send her back as a broken robot who's afraid of us, or they'll make her hate us so much she'll try to kill us." Adrian pointed out.

"But they can't make her hate vampires. That would be like making her hate herself." Rose insisted.

"But they could make her hate vampires. They could make her hate herself." I drew everyone's attention. "If it weren't for the fact that using tattoo compulsion on me was impossible, and the fact that witches apparently have greater resistance to torture, I'd have started hating all of you by now."

"What do you mean? How do you know we're more resistant?" Inez asked.

"Because after Sheridan found out I was a witch, she and the other Alchemists made it sound like they'd encountered witches in reeducation before. I wasn't the only one. And they said it made me more resistant somehow. Honestly, just a few days in that purging cell made me so afraid I'd actually considered consenting to their whims, but I fortunately held out for three months. Then I played along. And being around the other detainees was almost worse, because they avoided me like the plague. I can only imagine what they'd do to Jill." I explained.

"But why would they do this to her?" Lissa banged her fist on her desk, gaining everyone's attention.

"Because it would hurt us." Adrian said. "Sydney and I love Jill, and they know it. Plus, whether they think you love her or not, they know you need her to stay Queen. You pissed them off when you gave us safe harbor."

"Adrian's right. They know exactly how much Jill means to you as an asset, let alone a sister. And even if they don't know about her being Shadow Kissed, they probably know she has some connection to Adrian what with how much time he spends with her. And they know that I love her... I know they know, because they used her and Adrian to torture me. When they were trying to get me to say I saw evil every time I saw a picture of Moroi, I said it so they wouldn't burn me again. Then they showed a picture of Adrian and Jill. I couldn't say they were evil, so Sheridan burned my arm longer than she had before, until I finally said they were evil, just to save my arm." I explained. "They know we all love and need Jill."

Lissa got an angry look I'd never seen before. It apparently wasn't good, because Rose and Adrian flinched.

"Liss, calm down." Rose whispered. "I can't suck the darkness out of you anymore. Calm down."

Lissa's features slowly softened until tears finally sprung in her eyes. "Why Jill? Why couldn't they have picked anything else? They could've just made good on their threat to stop helping us, but they chose her instead. Just like Rose chose Dimitri over me..."

I recognized the signs of Spirit's mood swings taking their toll on Lissa, and Rose and Adrian apparently noticed too.

"Liss, stop it. That was a long time ago, and I came back to you. Dimitri and I came back to you..." Rose hugged Lissa.

Lissa sobbed into Rose's shirt.

"Where the Hell is Christian?" Adrian growled.

"He's overseeing practice for the Moroi who want to fight." Rose sighed. "Dimitri, go get him. He's the only one who can calm her down besides me."

Dimitri immediately left the room in search of Christian.

The only one who hadn't spoken throughout this entire time was Eddie. He sat in what appeared to be an angry silence.

"Eddie?" I got his attention.

"We have to do something. We should be finding this new reeducation center. Adrian said it's not in Death Valley, so where is it this time?" Eddie finally spoke up.

"They haven't had time to rebuild a new one, so it's probably out of the country. And now that it's out of this country, it's going to be harder to find, because there are more places to narrow down than last time. You guys only figured out where I was based on Adrian's guess about the time zone and the fact that Keith was held in the same place." I sighed. "We need more information, but Jill isn't going to know much at first. Plus, she might go through reeducation differently just because she's a vampire."

"Well we have to do something!" Eddie exclaimed.

"We can do something. You and her bond mate are going to help with a tracking spell." Inez said. "Sydney said you're her boyfriend and Adrian's her bond mate. If the two of you truly love her, the spell should work. They can't do much to cloak her as Alchemists with no access to magical cloaking."

"You said I was her boyfriend?" Eddie looked confused.

"You basically are. You two love each other and if you weren't so stubborn and stupid, you guys would probably have been together a long time ago." I said. "Now let's try this tracking spell."

"The boyfriend and the bond mate need to stand in the center." Inez said.

Adrian and Eddie stood and moved close together.

"I'll need Yeva, Sydney, Jaclyn, the Queen, and me." Inez said.

"Me?" Lissa asked.

"Your Spirit magic will enhance the spell, and you're her sister, so it will strengthen the connection." Inez explained. "Now we need to clasp arms into a sort of pentagram around the boys."

"Aren't pentagrams satanic?" Rose asked.

"Not this one." Yeva shook her head. "Just the stars. She wants us to do the one shaped like a house."

We moved into position as Inez had directed us. The others in the room watched in wonder.

"Repeat what I say and chant it as you focus on the girl." Inez instructed.

Inez spoke some words in Greek and we copied what she said as we focused on Jill. Even Adrian and Eddie joined in. A few moments later, I felt a surge of energy leave me and enter the pentagram. I—and presumably everyone else—suddenly saw images of environment. Novosibirsk. I saw Novosibirsk, Russia. Then it was like we were a camera zooming in on a specific building. It was supposedly a research facility, but the inside looked almost exactly like the reeducation center in Death Valley. We sped through hallways until we finally saw Jill in a room, bound to a chair. This was the vomiting torture they'd put me through. Once they were done showing her the images, they'd finally let her vomit. The images were of me, Adrian, Rose, Lissa, Eddie, and many of our other friends. There were even pictures of her family.

"They're all evil. I know they're evil." Jill insisted.

I couldn't tell if she was playing along or submitting to their beliefs, but I didn't get the chance to figure it out before we were suddenly zoomed out of the room. We all dropped to the ground in exhaustion.

"Lissa!" Christian exclaimed as he entered the room.

He knelt down next to her and tried to help her sit up.

"Need... sugar..." Lissa said.

"What?" Christian asked.

"Get her some damned sugar!" Rose exclaimed.

Rose pulled some candy out of Lissa's desk and handed it to each of us in turn. It helped reenergize us a little, but we'd need more to get back to full strength.

"Coffee..." I groaned.

"What happened?" Dimitri fawned all over Yeva.

"The spell just took a lot of energy. Calm down, Dimka." Yeva sighed.

"You keep candy in your desk?" Adrian tried and failed to sit up.

"It relieves my stress." Lissa said.

"That's what fat people say." Adrian teased.

"Do I look fat to you?" Lissa asked.

"I'd normally refuse to answer that question, but I can honestly say you don't look the least bit fat." Adrian said.

"Well, if it's day time for Jill, we can cross off any countries that are currently experiencing night. Hell, we can cross off every country except Russia." I said.

"How could you tell it was Russia?" Adrian asked.

"That was Novosibirsk." Yeva said.

"Novosibirsk..." Rose was apparently still uncomfortable with remembering it. "That's... that's where Dimitri found me. It's also where I escaped and called Sydney to pick me up."

Dimitri frowned, obviously feeling guilty.

"So you guys have been there before?" Adrian questioned.

"Yes." Rose, Yeva, Dimitri, and I said.

"And Abe." I added.

"God, how much weirder can this get?" Eddie groaned.

"We have to go to Russia to save Jill as soon as possible." I tried and failed to get up.

"We have to rest first. None of us have the power to do anything right now." Ms. Terwilliger reminded me.

"And you and Adrian can't leave. The Alchemists are watching for when you guys leave. They'll immediately go after you if you do." Lissa added. "I can't let you leave."

"Screw the Alchemists. I'm not staying here when Jill's in danger and I know precisely where she is." Adrian protested.

"Adrian..." Lissa couldn't form much of a response.

"I'm only going to wait one day. One day before I pick up and leave. You won't stop me." Adrian said. "I'm your friend, not your prisoner."

"I'm not trying to make you my prisoner, Adrian. I'm trying to keep you in sanctuary. The Alchemists will only further use you against me and Sydney. And taking Sydney is their ultimate goal, so I can't let them." Lissa said.

"That sounds more like revenge than protection, your majesty." Adrian pointed out. "Do something really productive. Distract the Alchemists by abandoning their resources while Sydney and I run to Jill's rescue." Adrian said.

"And what of Sydney's family? Are they just going to stay here while you two run off on a potential suicide mission?" Lissa countered.

"Yes. My family has to stay under your protection until my ultimate goal is complete." I said.

"And just what is that ultimate goal?" Lissa questioned.

"Something achieved only after we save Jill. I'll leave regardless of what you say. I'll owe another debt to Abe by making him blow up Court's walls again if I have to." I said. "I won't abandon her to the torture they put me through."

"You're not abandoning her. There will be Merry Men and guardians all over their asses." Rose promised.

"That's not the point. I don't trust anyone but Eddie and Adrian with Jill's safety, because I don't trust anyone but them in general." I snapped. "Those two and Jill are the only people who have significantly proven that they're worth my trust."

"You don't trust me?" Rose looked hurt.

My other friends looked about the same.

"Or me?" Ms. Terwilliger looked pained.

"I don't trust anyone." I repeated. "I can't."

"Why?" Adrian asked.

"Because everyone I've ever trusted has betrayed me." I said. "My father's an asshole, Trey beat Sonya and I up in an alley, none of you trusted me enough to tell me about your real plan with the Warriors—which translates to not trusting my negotiation skills—Zoe sent me in for reeducation, and the Alchemists mercilessly tortured me because I fell in love with a vampire."

Realization dawned on everyone's faces. They finally realized that it had been a while since I trusted anyone.

"And you tricked me into abandoning you. But that didn't diminish my trust. And neither did you and Adrian running away instead of meeting up with us where you said you'd be." Eddie pointed out. "I still trust you."

"Having a friend trick you is different than being raised in a corrupt belief system that suddenly falls down around you." I countered. "Besides, I did it to save your lives so the Alchemists wouldn't go after all of you. I'd probably have ditched Adrian too if it weren't for the fact that I can't imagine life without him. And what people did to me was for purely selfish reasons—not to save my life."

Eddie looked like he was going to make another protest, but Rose stopped him. "Sydney's right. There's a major difference. Regardless of how selfish it might sound to you, it's completely selfless to us. Lissa believed I was leaving to stake Dimitri for selfish reasons, but I was just fulfilling his dying wish. And you guys believe that Sydney tricking you was a horrible thing to do to a friend, but she actually sacrificed her life to save yours. So although Sydney needs to try trusting us again, you can't call her selfish for not doing it right away."

"That may be the best speech you've ever given." Lissa said.

"You should've heard what I said to Dimitri before I staked him in Russia." Rose scoffed.

Dimitri looked like he didn't know whether to smirk or frown. Russia was a conflicting memory to him now.

"I _have_ to find Jill." I insisted. "I owe her a lot. She's done more for me than she realizes."

"I think we should form a group of people who are friends with Jill to lead this mission. Sydney and the other people involved in the last break out of a reeducation center should probably be the primary leaders, seeing as how they know what they're doing." Dimitri said.

"You think I'm leader material?" Adrian scoffed.

"I think you've always been leader material. You were just too focused on other distractions during your previous chances." Dimitri smirked.

"I second the motion to make them leaders." Rose said. "All in favor?"

"Rose-" Lissa was about to protest, but then she saw that she and Eddie were the only ones who hadn't raised their hands to agree with Adrian and I being leaders. "You all can't be serious?"

"We need all the help we can get, and Rose obviously trusts her. I think we both know from experience that when Rose trusts someone, we probably should too." Christian pointed out.

Lissa sighed in resignation. "At the very least, you need to have a plan on how to sneak out of Court before I can let you leave. The Alchemists are monitoring it for any signs of your leaving. They'll kill or capture the two of you as soon as you step outside."

We all gave that some thought. Then Ms. Terwilliger spoke up. "I have a way we could sneak them out."

We all collectively turned to look at her.

"How?" I questioned.

"Magic." Inez smirked.


	11. Magic

**Chapter 11: Magic**

**Sydney's POV**

After agreeing we'd wait at least a day before looking for Jill, I called Marcus for help. He and a few of his Merry Men were currently sitting in an old Moroi war room.

"I never thought we'd have to use this room." Lissa sighed. Then she straightened confidently. "But taking Jill is an act of war."

"I like this confident and _ready to kill for family_ side of you. It's great." Rose smirked.

"How long are you going to ignore me, Rose?" Marcus suddenly asked.

We all stared at them in confusion.

Rose sighed. "As long as it takes."

"What are you two talking about?" I asked.

Rose glared at Marcus and he smirked back at her.

"Just say it, Rose." Marcus said.

"Never." Rose said.

"Wait, haven't I seen you before Sydney introduced us?" Lissa asked. "And the name Marcus... it rings a bell."

"It should. I only met you multiple times over the course of a year." Marcus smirked. "Tell them, Rose."

Rose groaned uncomfortably. "I met Marcus while Lissa and I were running away. He was a student at one of the colleges we lived near."

"Specify how you met me and what happened after you met me." Marcus looked smug.

"I hate you." Rose glared.

"Just say it." Marcus grinned. "If you say it, I'll leave you alone."

"But they won't." Rose gestured to the rest of the room.

"Yes, but are they more annoying than me?" Marcus chuckled.

Rose looked like she was ready to kill him. "We were taking a tour of the college when we were enrolled in the nearby high school. I ditched our group to go to the bathroom and met Marcus while I was looking for where they went. He directed me there and asked me out."

"Oh, he's the one who played his guitar outside our window and sang." Lissa realized. "And then you snuck out of our room for a few hours every night for the entire month we were there. And that's why you went back there every week after we left!"

"You knew?" Rose looked shocked.

"Kind of hard to not notice your stupid grin that you only get when you like someone. Besides, I was a light sleeper, remember?" Lissa scoffed.

"You just hit every dating group, don't you?" Adrian teased. "Asshole Moroi, rebel Alchemists, and powerful Dhampirs. Oh, and let's not forget the ones that are temporarily Strigoi!"

"You do realize you just called yourself an asshole Moroi, right?" Rose quipped.

"Actually, I was referring to guys like Jesse Zeklos. I'm my own special category." Adrian grinned.

"Yeah, you're special. But not in the good way." Rose rolled her eyes. "_Really_ special."

"Can we stop talking about Rose's love life and just focus on planning Jill's escape?" Dimitri sighed.

He was right, but I was pretty sure he only changed our focus because he was uncomfortable talking about Rose's past loves.

"What can you tell us about the Alchemist compound besides what we've already seen?" Lissa asked.

I drew a diagram and handed it to her.

"Wow, this is impressive." Lissa commented.

"I'm good at math, so the dimensions should be to scale." I said. "And it's hard to forget any reeducation center."

"Yeah, that's about what I remember." Adrian agreed. "But we'll need someone else on the inside to turn off the knockout gas. Sydney turned it off last time, but we don't have a technical genius slash witch to figure out the controls and sneak into places unseen."

"I might be able to speed up the routine check of the gas controls downstairs. One of my contacts works with that stuff for his job." Marcus said. "He could turn it off without suspicion."

"He'll need to, otherwise the detainees and us will all be knocked out as soon as any security breech is detected." I said.

"Even though putting us in there to get her is our priority, we should get a whole slew of guardians to help us." Rose said. "These reeducation centers don't sound easy to get into—you guys were just lucky enough to have someone as smart as Sydney on the inside."

"Yeah, lucky." I frowned in thought.

"But there's another problem. Even if Sydney and I are successfully snuck out of Court, don't you think it will draw attention if the Queen of the Moroi suddenly leaves and goes straight to Novosibirsk—right where they're hiding Jill?" Adrian pointed out.

"No, it won't." Rose said. "Sydney, didn't you have to do paperwork every time you helped me in Russia?"

"Don't even get me started on how much paperwork you required." I said. "Why?"

"Then they'd know that I was in Novosibirsk back when I was hunting Dimitri. We can pretend that we're going so I can show Lissa Hotel Hell and get it cleared out." Rose suggested.

"Hotel Hell?" I questioned.

"Rose was trapped in a hotel full of Strigoi with me for a few weeks. Hotel Hell is the nickname she came up with for it." Dimitri clarified.

"That means that you'll have to find a way to 'leak' to the Alchemists that you're officially sanctioning an attack on a Strigoi hotel. It will kind of get you brownie points with them until they figure out why you were really there." I said.

"Why would it score us brownie points?" Lissa asked.

"One of their arguments against Moroi is that they don't do enough against Strigoi—lazy Moroi who refuse to fight and Dhampirs who only act as bodyguards and reproductive partners." I said.

"Ouch." Rose said, feigning pain. "It hurts that they'd say that about us."

"Alright Jackie, how are you getting us out of here?" Adrian asked. "You said it was magic, but you never specified."

Inez smirked.

"I'm going to turn you and Sydney into cats for a short time. It will hurt a little when you grow back into humans, but it's safe otherwise." Ms. Terwilliger said.

"Growing always hurts more than shrinking." Dimitri smirked.

Rose looked at him in amazement and laughed. "Did you... did you just make a vague sex joke? I've been trying to get you to do that for so long! It was kind of lame, but because of the relevance to our situation and it's vagueness... oh, my God!"

Rose laid her head down on the table and laughed.

"It wasn't that funny, Roza." Dimitri rolled his eyes.

"It was funny just because you don't usually do that." Lissa smirked. "Anyway, let's get them turned into cats and get going."

After having me recite a spell while staring at a cat—and making Adrian stare at a cat while Ms. Terwilliger recited a spell—we were finally ready to go. Mostly because Adrian and I were shrunk down into cats and our clothes were discarded into travel bags.

"It will start wearing off in an hour. We should be in the car by then and you two can change back into your clothes." Inez said.

We were stuffed into a pet carrier and started leaving Court.

"Hey, let's see if we can understand each other's meows. I don't think they can hear us." Adrian suggested.

"Yes, I can understand you. God, this is weird on so many levels." I said.

"It's great." Adrian seemed to smirk.

I rolled my eyes as we were carried out of Court, our friends in tow.


	12. Russia

**Chapter 12: Russia**

**Sydney's POV**

Dimitri was right. Growing was harder than shrinking. Adrian and I at least had privacy on Lissa's private jet when we turned back into humans—I wasn't ready to share my body with my friends, especially while I was still recovering from the malnourishment. We were left in the room that the Queen was supposed to sleep in during long flights, and once we were turned back into humans, Adrian and I immediately got dressed and headed out to our friends.

"So, what was it like being a cat?" Rose asked.

"Weird." I admitted.

"I think I have a hairball." Adrian pulled some hair out of his mouth.

The rest of us nearly gagged.

"Hey, Melbourne." Trey grinned.

"Hi, Trey." I twitched a smile.

"Seriously, what's with all these nicknames?" Rose asked.

"Melrose was my alias' last name, and Ms. Terwilliger misread it as Melbourne, so she and Trey call me Melbourne sometimes." I shrugged.

"And Misty Steele?" Rose questioned.

"A fake name Adrian and I came up with so she could hide from the Alchemists." Marcus said.

"And I already know why you're called Sage. And Taylor." Rose pondered. "Iolanthe?"

"It's my witch name." I shrugged.

"What does the K in your middle name stand for?" Rose was just trying to entertain herself now.

"Katherine." I rolled my eyes. "Any more questions about my many names?"

"The girl who goes by many names has but one true name now... Sydney Katherine Ivashkov!" Rose said in a dramatic movie voice.

"Don't wear it out." Adrian teased. "Anyway, who all is on the plane? I don't remember Angeline or Juarez leaving with us."

I took notice of Angeline sleeping next to Trey. God, she was actually quiet when she slept.

"I'm here." Neil stood up. "I'd rather look for Olive, but this is my second priority."

"As romantic as that is for Olive, Jill's actually your priority." Adrian glared.

He normally liked Neil, but Neil had phrased that wrong. He blushed in embarrassment. Eddie stared out the window, looking ready to take on anything.

"We'll get Jill back." I promised.

"I know." Eddie said.

I put an arm around Eddie and sighed. "Stop frowning. Be happy that we're finding Jill."

Eddie smiled at me. "You're really good at tough love, you know that?"

"I know that all too well." I smiled back.

We spent the next few hours telling stories—there wasn't much else to do on the plane ride. As we got closer to Novosibirsk, Rose and Dimitri got more tense. I understood why, which made me feel bad for them.

"So... could either of you give me a good map of the hotel? We have to strike it if we're going to make our cover plausible." Lissa said.

"Why can't we just burn it down? It's full of Strigoi anyway." Eddie pointed out.

"Because... there are humans in there. Regardless of how stupid they are, I don't want to kill the human servants." Rose said.

Dimitri made a vague sketch and handed it to Lissa.

"What's this that you drew along the outside of the hotel?" Lissa pointed to part of the drawing.

"There's a maze on the outside. You have no idea what kind of a bitch it is to get through at night." Rose said.

"Right. I remember you mentioning the maze when you came back." Lissa said.

"You told her about the hotel?" Dimitri asked.

"I thought you were dead, and I had to talk to someone about it." Rose shrugged.

"Neil, hand this sketch to the other guardians." Lissa said.

Neil dutifully took it to them and they had a plan made within an hour. The strike team was ready by the time we landed. But then we found another set of familiar faces as we got off the plane.

"Olena? Denis?" Rose was surprised.

"Hello, Rose." Olena smiled warmly.

"Rose." Denis nodded with a smirk. "Nice to know you're not dead."

Rose immediately ran to give Olena a hug. Dimitri smiled warmly.

"What's going on?" Lissa asked.

"This is Olena Belikova—Dimitri's mom—and Denis, a Strigoi hunter." I introduced them.

"Ah, the Alchemist." Denis said.

"Her name is Sydney." Olena pulled back from Rose. "Can I have a hug, Dimka?"

Dimitri walked over to his mother and gave her a much needed hug.

"Why are you guys here?" Rose asked.

"Yeva called ahead." Olena shrugged.

"We're coming for backup." Denis clarified.

"You're willing to risk you're own daughter for this mission?" Rose turned to Yeva—who had been oddly quiet on the plane.

Yeva shrugged. "There is no more risk to her than there is to me. She and I have the same guardian training."

"You're not on this mission because of your training." Rose pointed out.

"I know. I'm just the witch. And Olena is now a part of your muscle." Yeva said.

"I don't want to risk her." Rose looked dead serious.

"What about me?" Denis asked.

"Olena can take care of herself. Didn't you learn that when you were last here?" Yeva scoffed.

"I promise I'll be fine, Rose." Olena put a hand on Rose's shoulder.

"How are your daughters? And their children?" Rose asked.

"Paul misses you—as do my daughters. Zoya and the baby are well. Now, stop changing the subject and realize that I will be fine." Olena smiled warmly.

"Fine, I get it." Rose said. "Wait... when you said your daughters missed me-"

"I was including Viktoria." Olena confirmed. "She understands now. I'd like if you could visit while you're here."

"That all depends on my boss." Rose gestured to Lissa. "The Queen of the Moroi."

"Your majesty." Olena bowed.

She elbowed Denis and he bowed too.

"Please, don't bow. It's awkward for me." Lissa said.

Olena grinned. "I can only imagine, especially given how young you are."

"We should head for the Strigoi hotel." Christian said. "How do we get there?"

With that, Rose and Dimitri directed the leading car to the hotel. The majority of the strike team was riding in the cars that followed us. Rose and Dimitri flinched as they stared at a bridge that went over the Ob.

"Rose?" Lissa grabbed Rose's hand.

"It's that bridge I told you about." Rose was shaking.

"What bridge?" Adrian asked.

"The bridge where Roza thought she staked me." Dimitri didn't look much better than Rose.

Olena grabbed Dimitri's hand and looked at Rose sympathetically. We were in front of the Strigoi hotel not long after, and just like Rose and Dimitri said, there was a maze. We got out of the car and the strike team started positioning themselves all around the hotel, taking multiple entry points. It was daytime and we had a lot of guardians, so we had the advantage on any Strigoi.

"Nathan and Galina are dead, right?" Rose whispered, probably not wanting us to hear her.

"Yes, I killed them. It should just be rogue Strigoi now—though they may have appointed a new leader in my absence." Dimitri whispered back.

While the rest of the strike team was taking the odd entry points, our group was going through the front door. The only people who stayed in the car were the witches—they were here for Jill. We walked through the front door and found what you'd expect of Strigoi—sleeping during the day with a few random guards and human servants.

"No-" The Strigoi guard's words were muffled by Dimitri clamping a hand over his mouth.

Rose staked the Strigoi. "I think he recognized us."

"He was the guard who tried to kill you when you escaped." Dimitri pointed out.

"You didn't kill him?" Rose asked.

"He didn't rebel after I killed Galina." Dimitri shrugged.

"Your old Dhampir instructor." Olena winced.

We continued traveling through the hotel. Rose stopped in front of a door.

"What is it?" I asked.

"This is a vault full of weapons from the Strigois' past kills." Rose said. "Where's a human servant when you need one?"

As if on cue, a human came down the hall. He stopped and stared in horror at Rose and excitement at Dimitri.

"Master, your back! But I thought you left to kill her..." The servant stared at Rose.

"Oleg!" Rose rushed forward and grabbed him.

"No! I don't want to help you again!" Oleg said.

Dimitri forced his voice to turn cold. "Oleg! I decided not to kill her and keep her as a pet instead. Do what she says."

Oleg looked confused for a second, but then he nodded his head respectfully. "Yes, sir."

"Oleg, I need you to open the vault again." Rose said. "And just like last time, I'm not going to kill you."

"You killed Inna." Oleg said.

"No, I didn't. I knocked her out." Rose argued.

"And she died of blood loss mixed with a concussion." Oleg pointed out.

Rose looked guilty for only a second. "She tried to kill me, and she was my only way out. Now do what Dimitri says and open the damned vault for me!"

Oleg reluctantly pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the vault. Just as Rose had said, there were weapons everywhere. We pocketed some and left others for the strike team to collect.

"Oleg, is there a security room? With cameras?" Rose asked.

"Of course. But it's on an upper level." Oleg said.

"Then take us up there." Rose demanded.

Oleg led us up some flights of stairs until we finally reached the top floor and exited. There were guardians fighting off Strigoi and trying to pull humans out of the hotel. We headed to the security room door as the Strigoi continued being distracted by the guardians.

"Okay, now let's see how far along the guardians are." Rose went to the computer that monitored the hotel. She hesitated as she saw that there was an icon with her name on the computer. "What's this?"

"I don't know." Dimitri shrugged. "Galina was the primary one to monitor things."

Rose clicked on the icon with her name. A video popped up of Rose being pushed against a wall by Dimitri.

_"Why did you come here?" Dimitri growled._

_"Because you hit me over the head and dragged me here." Rose quipped._

Rose changed to the next video in the string of videos. In the video, she was wearing a dress and had blood running down her neck. Dimitri had just fed from her and she was showing the characteristic behavior of a feeder—moaning and begging Dimitri to feed from her again. Rose flinched and continued changing the videos. Each one seemed to show her being used as a feeder. The only thing that could be taken positively from the videos was that even when Rose was weak and being fed off of, she never lost her resolve to stay a Dhampir—even when Dimitri made being a Strigoi sound tempting. Then there was suddenly a video where Rose was alone and staring off into space.

_"No!" Rose shouted. "I have to stop Avery!"_

From that point of the video, Rose went to the bathroom to clean herself up. When she got back, her bruises were much more obvious than when they'd been covered in blood. When Dimitri came in to feed, Rose convinced him that she was too weak—that he might kill her before he got the chance to awaken her. He reluctantly agreed, and the next few videos seemed to be of her detoxing herself of the need to be fed off of. And there was finally one when Rose was holding a broken chair leg behind her as she sat with Dimitri on the bed.

_Rose looked nervous as she asked, "Tell me again. One more time. Why do you want to awaken me so badly?"_

_Dimitri sighed. "Because I want you. I've always wanted you."_

Rose leaned forward and started kissing Dimitri. But that was just the distraction so she could shove the makeshift wooden stake into his heart. She knew the wooden stake wouldn't kill him, so she wisely started escaping. One of the last videos was of her interacting with Oleg.

_"Stick," Rose said in Russian. She pointed at the silver ring she wore and made a slashing motion. "Stick. Where?"_

_Oleg stared at her in utter confusion and then asked, in perfect English, "Why are you talking like that?"_

_Rose groaned. "Oh for God's sake. Where is the vault?"_

Rose ended the string of videos there. Then she deleted all of the ones that involved her.

"I can't believe you said _stick where_." Oleg said.

"I didn't know you could speak English, and my Russian wasn't the best!" Rose exclaimed.

"Let's focus on the guardians now." Dimitri suggested.

By now, all of the humans were outside. It was purely Strigoi left in the hotel—aside from us and the guardians.

"Everyone needs to get to the vault on the first floor to collect weapons and then get out of the building. We're going to burn it down." Dimitri said into an earpiece.

All of the guardians did as they were told and collected everything that was in the vault before finally ending up outside. We rushed down the stairs and out of the building with minimal Strigoi trouble.

"Burn it down!" Lissa shouted.

The strike team started strategically placing C-4 everywhere.

"Where the hell did you get all this C-4 from?" Adrian asked.

"Abe might have a problem getting it, but a Queen has no trouble." Lissa smirked conspiratorially.

"You're such a dark angel." Adrian teased.

We drove away with the humans and strike teams in the cars behind us. When we were far enough away, Lissa gave an order and the whole building blew up.

"Now let's go get Jill." Lissa said.


	13. Reeducation

**Chapter 13: Reeducation**

**Sydney's POV**

As we rode back to Novosibirsk, tensions grew—each person having a different reason. The general area we were in held bad memories for Rose and Dimitri, no question. The guardians and Neil were nervous about going against Alchemists. The majority of us were filled with tension from the prospect of saving Jill—especially Eddie. The witches were feeling tension just because they could sense ours. Marcus was the only one who wasn't tense. But I was, and I had more reasons than just Jill.

"For God's sake, can we cut through the tension? Nervousness is contagious, you know." Marcus said.

"Shut up, Marcus." Rose said.

I probably would've said the same thing, but I felt frozen in my silence. I was feeling panicky, and bad memories of reeducation were welling up within me.

"Sydney?" Adrian touched my shoulder.

I flinched at his touch. Then I relaxed when I remembered that it was only him. But I also realized that I'd been shaking.

"Sydney, are you okay?" Adrian whispered. He tried running his hand up and down my back. "You're so shaky and tense. Even your breaths are shallow. What's wrong?"

I opened my mouth to say something, but no sound came out. My fear only continued to rise.

"Jesus, guys! I think there's something wrong with Sydney!" Adrian exclaimed.

Everyone turned to look at me. They seemed to get scared when they realized how bad I looked. Rose got out of her seat and knelt in front of me.

"Sydney, are you okay?" Rose tried to rub my arm comfortingly.

Her touch felt like the burn of the liquid Sheridan had stuck my arm in.

"Don't touch me!" I screamed. "Evil creature of the night touched me... vampires are all evil... Moroi are evil..."

Everyone gaped at me in shock. I'd never called any of them evil before except Rose—and I'd stopped doing that not long after the last time I helped her. I'd admitted I liked her, because liking Rose was inevitable.

Now Rose had a pained expression. "You... you haven't called me an evil creature of the night in over a year. Sydney, what's wrong?"

Rose hadn't touched me this time. I longed for her friendly affection... but it also made me want to vomit. I was starting to hyperventilate. Even my facts couldn't calm me this time.

"Sydney..." Adrian put his arms around me.

I started screaming even louder. It burned worse than when Rose had touched me. "Don't touch me!"

Unlike Rose, Adrian kept his arms firmly planted around me—regardless of how much I tried to thrash and escape.

"Don't touch me! Let me go!" I repeated those words over and over again.

Adrian ignored me and kept his arms around me. He was crying as he held me close.

I was slowly losing my resolve, barely doing any damage as I pounded on his chest. "Please, don't touch me..."

I was sobbing as I begged Adrian to release me. Adrian cried more silently as he held me close. I eventually had such an emotional overload that I just passed out, Adrian's arms still around me.

**Rose's POV**

As I watched Adrian, sobbing and holding Sydney close to his chest, I felt bad for him. I felt like things were all my fault. If Sydney hadn't gotten involved with me in the first place, she wouldn't have been put on Alchemist probation, or assigned to Jill, or fallen in love with Adrian—which is what led to her reeducation.

"Your aura is pretty dark right now." Lissa said. "Even without including the Spirit darkness that lingers from our bond."

"I just... I feel like it was the way she got involved with helping me that caused this." I said.

"Then by that definition, it's not your fault. It would be Abe's." Lissa pointed out. "He's the one who got her caught up in that deal. Then the blame would go back to the Alchemists and Keith for teaching her about vampires and causing her deal with Abe. Then the blame falls on Strigoi for causing humans to be afraid of us. Then the humans for creating the Alchemists. Then Moroi and Dhampirs for turning Strigoi in the first place. It's a vicious blame cycle that never ends, even though it needs to."

"Nice speech." I sighed.

"I've been working on my speech skills." Lissa said. "Now use your listening skills."

"What are we going to do about Sydney? She's one of our witches, and Adrian won't want to work without her. Plus... she's my friend. I don't feel right about taking her out of the equation." I said.

"Rose, I'm glad you're concerned about Sydney as a friend, but this isn't about her anymore. The story started with you and continued with Sydney, but this is about Jill now. We have to save her, regardless of who's on the front lines. Jill will just be glad that Sydney put this strong of an effort into saving her life." Lissa put her hand on my shoulder.

Sydney sat up with a gasp, startling everyone—especially Adrian.

"Are you okay, Sydney?" Adrian looked like he was ready to jump off a cliff if it would make her feel better.

"I..." Sydney shook for a second, but then it was like she forced herself to stop. "I'm fine. Get to the Alchemist facility."

"Women are never fine when they say they're fine." Adrian chastised. "Now tell me how you feel."

Sydney's eyes showed an inner conflict, but her face remained a steely resolve. "This isn't about me. It's about Jill."

Adrian frowned. He and I could both tell that Sydney was probably dying to be held safe in Adrian's arms, but she was forcing herself to be strong for Jill.

"Sydney, we can't send you into the facility and risk another breakdown like that. Our main focus has to be on Jill, and we can't focus on her if we're taking care of you." Lissa said.

"No, let her go." Eddie said. "There's no one I trust more with Jill's life than Sydney and Adrian."

I was going to point out that I'd saved Jill's life before and brought her existence to notice, but I figured that was an argument best saved for later. "Eddie's right. We need Sydney."

Lissa frowned at me, no doubt hoping to remind me of the conversation we'd just had. When Eddie and I didn't change our minds, Lissa sighed. "Fine. But remember that Jill is the priority."

We all nodded in agreement as we continued to the Alchemist facility.

**Adrian's POV**

I knew just from the look on her face that Sydney was forcing herself to be numb and emotionless. Doing that was only going to make her emotions hit her even harder later, but we had to focus on Jill. I just hoped I'd be able to make a convincing argument to Sydney later about talking to someone about her feelings—whether that was me, Rose, or a therapist.

"Alright, we're going to cast a spell that should make our whole party invisible. This would normally be a difficult task, but we have a lot of witches to shoulder the work. We'll have an hour at the least, two at the most before the spell wears off." Inez said.

We all nodded in understanding. Sydney and the rest of the witches cast a very powerful spell to make us invisible. I was grateful for the cover, but it was going yo be hard to explain all of the doors opening themselves—especially if the cameras were being closely monitored. I had no doubt that Sheridan had warned the other Alchemists about doors randomly opening themselves.

"The strike team won't be made invisible—that's just too much power to use and too hard for the Alchemists to not notice. We're just going in to secure a few things in the facility before we call them in." Yeva said.

The strike team could see us and we could see each other because we all knew about the spell, but no one else should've been able to.

"Let's go. The faster, the better." Sydney said.

We all started following her diligently—except for the strike team, who waited by the vans. Luckily for us, there was a large group of Alchemists going in and coming out, so we were easily able to conceal the open door.

"This must be a shift change." Sydney said. "The Alchemists switch off every few months."

When we got inside, the similarities between this facility and the one in Death Valley made me wince. Sydney was still suppressing her feelings, so she didn't really react.

Lissa looked directly into the desk secretary's eyes. She seemed scared because she noticed Lissa, but Lissa kept her calm. "You aren't going to tell anyone we're here. You aren't going to show a negative reaction to me. You will just exit the building and go home."

The woman got a dreamy look in her eyes as she did exactly as Lissa said. She'd used compulsion on her. Lissa stole the woman's keys that she'd left on the desk. They were labeled—typical Alchemists—and one went to the elevator that the large group of people had just gone to. Lissa walked over to the elevator and used the key to deactivate it—a majority of the staff were now trapped inside the elevator. Bangs and shouts to be let out were heard, but we ignored them.

"That's a stroke of luck. We'll have hardly any staff to deal with now." I said.

We continued through the hallway to the security door. In his impatience, Eddie threw it open and marched up to the closest security guy. He knocked him out with one swift punch.

"Damn Castile, remind me not to piss you off." I said.

Ignoring me, Eddie got into a beat-down with the other security guy.

"Trust me, Eddie's almost as scary as me just when he's acting as a guardian. So you can't even imagine how scary he is when motivated by love." Rose said, tackling a third security guy.

Dimitri got into a scuffle with the fourth and final security guy. We were all pretty much just watching, so there was almost no point in most of us being here. Sydney made herself useful and destroyed the security system with a nearby crowbar—seriously, who keeps a crowbar in a security room?

"I was right, you know." Rose said.

"About what?" Dimitri asked.

"About foreign labor being cheap and overrated." Rose smirked.

"I believe you specifically called me cheap foreign labor." Dimitri smirked back.

"That was before I realized how much of a badass God you were." Rose teased.

I looked at the security cameras, hoping to find Jill. Most of the feeds were of regular detainees in classes. There were a few scattered security guards, but it was nothing the strike team couldn't handle. There were only a couple of detainees in the torture rooms.

I couldn't understand where Jill was at first. Then I saw her... and I was horrified. Sheridan had left Jill in one of the showers and was waiting for Jill outside. But there was someone in the showers with Jill. An Alchemist detainee.

"I haven't been with a Moroi in a while." The detainee stared at Jill's naked body. "That's why they put me in here, you know. I was with a Moroi."

Jill was backed into a corner. "Please, just go away..."

"Not a chance, Moroi." The guy was starting to pull his clothes off.

Eddie suddenly appeared behind me, face red with anger. "HELL NO!"

The showers were on this floor, and Eddie shot out of the room to save Jill. Sydney and I followed him down the hallway. We went straight passed a surprised Sheridan and followed Eddie into the showers. He tackled the Alchemist detainee just as he'd gotten his shirt off.

"Eddie!" Jill exclaimed.

Hearing her voice would normally make Eddie fall at her feet, but he was mercilessly beating the Alchemist detainee instead.

"A Dhampir? What the-" The detainee was cut off by a punch from Eddie.

The guy didn't get much more of a chance to speak with the way Eddie was wailing on him. Eddie finally just put his arms around the detainee's neck and throttled his head up and down.

"How dare you touch her! How dare you even look at her!" Eddie wailed in the most primal tone I'd ever heard a man utter.

Eddie was choking the life out of the guy.

"Eddie..." Jill used an extremely calm tone for someone in her situation as she put a hand on his shoulder. "Please stop."

Eddie immediately dropped the guy like a sack of potatoes and stood up. He pulled Jill into a hug. "Did he touch you? Or hurt you? Are you okay?"

The way Eddie's voice cracked was enough to bring anyone to tears.

"I'm okay. I promise." Jill buried her face in Eddie's chest.

I think Eddie would've been embarrassed to be hugging a naked Jill, but he was too focused on her safety to even notice.

"Let's go home." Eddie whispered.

Jill looked up at him and nodded in agreement. Eddie finally seemed to realize she was naked and put his jacket around her. It was just big enough to cover her modestly. I think he would've given her his pants if she asked.

Rose was dragging an unconscious Sheridan behind her as she and the rest of our party walked in. "Oh, Jill..."

Jill looked up from Eddie and looked relieved to see all the familiar faces. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you guys right now."

Jill and Lissa locked gazes, an awkward silence passing between them. Lissa let tears sprung from her eyes as she rushed forward and hugged Jill.

"Lissa..." Jill was shocked, to say the least.

"I love you so much..." Lissa sobbed. "I'm sorry you ever had to leave Court."

Jill started crying even harder and put her head in Lissa's chest. She finally understood just how much Lissa cared. Rose added herself to the moment by hugging them both. Rose was the one who'd introduced us to Jill and eventually discovered that she was Lissa's sister. If it weren't for Rose, we'd never have known Jill, let alone loved her as much as we do.

Jill was the one who finally broke the hug and turned to me with a sad smile. She rushed forward and hugged me. "I love you, Adrian."

Hearing her say that the way she did cut me almost as deep as when Sydney had told me that for the first time. I cried too. "I love you too, Jailbait."

"I don't think I like that nickname anymore... considering what just happened..." Jill said.

"That's okay. I'll come up with new nicknames for you." I promised.

Jill finally turned her hug to Sydney. I think I heard her whisper, "If it weren't for you, Adrian never would've been able to find me. You kept Mark and Oksana's phone number, you supplied the witches, and you kept Adrian balanced. Thank you, Sydney."

Sydney smiled sadly as she sighed. "I love you, Jill."

Knowing all these people loved her probably made Jill feel great. Jill went back to Eddie and said, "Can we go home now?"


	14. Going Home

**Chapter 14: Going Home**

**Jill's POV**

After they found me, my friends ordered the strike team to come in and clear everything out. Detainees were sent away with Marcus, staff from the facility were left outside, and we got into cars. The detainee that had tried to rape me was left with the staff—Rose said he deserved reeducation. After everyone had been cleared out, Lissa gave an order for the facility to be blown up. It made me feel happy to watch the facility burst into flames, never to be used again.

I also felt secure sitting on Eddie's lap while we drove to Lissa's jet. Lissa also had word sent to someone on the strike team to get me a set of new clothes, just so I wouldn't be naked on the way home. I personally preferred Eddie's jacket, but real clothes would be nice too. When we got on the flight, Lissa encouraged me to put my new clothes on in her room. I did as she said, feeling better once I was in the green t-shirt and pair of jeans. She'd even had them buy my favorite brand of sneakers.

"Jill?" Eddie knocked on the door.

"Come in." I said.

He walked in and sat next to me on the bed. "So... how are you feeling?"

"Happy to be on a real bed and in real clothes." I said.

Eddie put his arm around me and smiled at my outfit. "So I guess you like my jacket?"

I'd put his jacket on over everything else. "I do."

Eddie put a hand on my face, dragging it across my cheek. "Jill... did that happen before we came for you? I mean... did he do something to you during the days before we got to the facility...?"

He was asking if the detainee had ever succeeded in raping me before the incident he just saw.

"No." I answered. "The creepiest it got before that was him staring at me from across the room a lot."

Eddie sighed with relief. "I'm sorry. I just... I didn't like the idea that he could've done something to you..."

I grabbed Eddie's hand. "He didn't. But I'm glad you came because... I'm a virgin. So he would've taken my virginity if you hadn't found me."

Eddie smiled sadly. "I would've killed him if that had happened. I didn't even think about that."

"I love you, Eddie." I said before kissing him.

Eddie seemed mildly surprised at first, but he relaxed pretty quickly. "I love you too, Jill."

Eddie and I stayed like that for a while. I'm not sure of exactly how long we'd kissed, but I remember waking up sometime later to a knock at the door.

"Jill?" Rose peeked her head in. "We're at Court."

She smiled when she saw Eddie snoring next to me and left us alone. I blushed in embarrassment, but then I realized there was nothing to be embarrassed about.

"Eddie?" I shook him a little.

"Huh?" Eddie yawned.

"Rose said we're back at Court." I said.

Eddie immediately got up and was about ready to leave the room when I grabbed his arm. "What's up?"

I pulled Eddie back to me and kissed him. "Wait for me."

Eddie smiled and helped me up so we could leave together. Everyone else was outside, greeting people who were apparently waiting for us. Sydney and Adrian were talking to a couple of women who looked like Sydney, Ms. Terwilliger and Inez were talking to some women—probably witches—and Rose and Dimitri shot one last glance back at me before heading off somewhere. We'd left Yeva, some guy named Denis, and Dimitri's mom in Russia.

"Hi, Jill." Lissa was waiting for me.

Christian was talking to Neil about something a few feet away.

"Hey, Lissa." I said awkwardly.

We hadn't really talked much since I'd left Court. Her declaration of love made me understand that she cared, but I still didn't know what to say.

"The law that out you in danger is being voted on tomorrow. I want you to be there—especially since you represent our family's council seat. No one will be able to get close to you. I'm putting Eddie and all of my royal guardians—except Rose—up as your protectors. I also need you there because I'll feel less nervous." Lissa smiled. "And... I think a majority of council members are voting with me, not to mention the fact that I can sway the vote."

"Good." I sighed. "Then I don't have to hide anymore?"

"Nope. And I'd actually like to spend more time with you. Rose might tag along, but that's just because she's jealous that I have a biological sister now. She always filled that position." Lissa laughed.

I thought about something. "I do want to stay here, but... can I visit Palm Springs sometimes. I made a few friends there, and I kind of had a job."

"A job?" Lissa looked confused.

"Don't be mad, but... I kind of did a modeling thing with a local designer. Sydney was pretty mad at me at first, but then she made a deal with the designer to hide my face with sunglasses, scarves, and masks." I admitted.

Lissa sighed. "I guess the past is the past, so I can't be mad at you now. And there's nothing really stopping you now. But Eddie has to go with you. And maybe a few other guardians."

I smiled and hugged Lissa. "Thank you."

Lissa smiled back. "I wish I could stay with you, but I have to sort through this Alchemist mess and find ways of pulling away from their support systems without damaging us forever."

"Go." I urged. "I'll be fine."

"See you later." Lissa gave me one last hug before taking off with Christian.

"Nina!" Neil ran across the lawn to a girl who was wandering nearby.

"I don't know what to say, so... I'm happy you're safe." Trey said.

"Thanks." I smiled.

I desperately wanted to be alone with Eddie, but I had a feeling it would be a while before my friends let me go.

"See you tomorrow." Angeline gave me a quick hug before rushing off with Trey.

Lovebirds. I thought to myself.

"I'm just glad you're okay." Sydney's mom—according to my bond with Adrian—said.

"I promise I'm fine, Mom." Sydney said, obviously lying in my opinion.

Her family seemed to buy it though.

"I'm taking Mom back to the guest housing Queen Lissa gave us. Later, Sydney." Carly said.

Carly and her mom headed back towards guest housing. The witches had taken off somewhere. That left just Adrian and Sydney standing between me and my alone time with Eddie.

"I'm going to take Sydney to get some rest." Adrian said. "Promise you'll still here later?"

"I promise." I grinned.

"See you later, Jill." Sydney gave me a quick hug.

"Bye, Sydney." I smiled at her.

Once she and Adrian were gone, I turned to Eddie. "Want to know something funny?"

"What?" He asked.

"Lissa didn't set up rooming arrangements for me before she left. I guess I'll just have to stay with you." I said.

"Jill..." Eddie started to protest.

"Stop." I said. "I want to go home with you. And I'm not going to pretend I don't love you. I might be royalty and you're my guardian, but that doesn't mean we have to heed to Moroi society's rules. We're in love, and that's all that matters."

"Don't you think it's a little scandalous?" Eddie asked.

"Eddie, have you met our friends? Sonya and Mikhail. Rose and Dimitri. Lissa and Christian. Adrian and Sydney. We couldn't escape scandal even if we were both Moroi." I laughed.

Eddie smiled. "Okay. But after Lissa gets you rooming, you have to go there without me."

"Are you kidding? If you're going to be my guardian, you have to live with me." I pointed out.

Eddie actually laughed. "You're as stubborn as Rose."

"That's what I was aiming for." I smirked. I jumped on his back for a piggy back ride. "Now take me home, Edison."

Eddie laughed and gave me a ride back to where he was staying.

**Sydney's POV**

The next night—or Moroi morning—Adrian and I made our way to Lissa's quarters. That's where the conference room was, and we were going to use it to plan our next move with the Alchemists. When we got there, Eddie was entertaining Jill, making her laugh uncontrollably.

"They're such a cute couple. Almost makes me sick." Rose smirked.

"As if you're any better. I heard you and Belikov can be so cute it makes Lissa want to throw up—and she loves romance." Adrian teased.

"Lissa! Have you been gossiping to Adrian about my relationship with Dimitri?" Rose gasped.

"Maybe just a little." Lissa smirked.

"I want to hear about this later." I whispered to Adrian.

"You got it." He winked.

I sat next to Jill. "So, how are things?"

"Great!" She exclaimed brightly. "But I want to hear more about you and Adrian's wedding."

"You experienced it through his eyes. How much could you have missed?" I scoffed.

"I had to take a break to arrange your transportation to Court." Jill reminded me. "Plus, Adrian wasn't around when you were being fitted for your dress."

I rolled my eyes, still smiling. "We can talk about it later. What about you and Eddie?"

"I think I've convinced him to be my boyfriend. And publicly admit it." Jill said.

"That's great." I grinned.

"Wait. Jill, where did you stay last night? I forgot to make living arrangements." Lissa narrowed her eyes.

"With Eddie." Jill shrugged.

Rose nearly spat out her orange juice.

"Not like that. Jeez, I only just barely convinced him to be my boyfriend. What you're thinking of is going to take a while." Jill said.

Eddie blushed.

"Yeah Rose, normal people don't sleep with their boyfriends until after it's official." Christian mocked.

"And normal people don't kiss until they're dating. Especially if one of them is with someone else at the time when you kiss them." Rose countered.

Lissa turned bright red. "Let's... let's stop this conversation."

"God, really. You guys are all romantics who don't understand the concept of sleeping around." Adrian teased.

"Adrian." I elbowed him.

He turned to me apologetically. "Sorry, Sage."

I rolled my eyes and we refocused our attention to Lissa.

"So, I was hoping to get some help from you guys in terms of making plans to pull away from the Alchemists. We can do things without them being directly involved. Instead of relying on them for help with law enforcement, we can just have people with good compulsion skills sweep things under the rug. Or we can even use some Moroi that get involved with law enforcement." Lissa said.

"Sweeping things under the rug? It sounds like you're an evil politician who's planning on doing bad things." Adrian joked.

"Aren't all politicians evil?" Lissa smirked.

"But not our Little Lissa." Adrian put his hand on his heart.

Lissa grinned. "I meant that just in case. Like for instance if a feeder gets noticed for bite marks, or magic gets caught on tape."

"Isn't that what being kinky and using special effects is supposed to explain? Or even coincidence?" I pointed out.

Adrian smirked. "Kinky, eh?"

"Not everyone believes in coincidence." Lissa smirked. "But you do have a point."

"What else do you need that the Alchemists normally provide? I can advise you on that." I offered.

"Witness protection and Strigoi cleanup." Lissa said.

"Make your own witness protection. And I can make at least some of the chemicals we use for Strigoi cleanup. Not to mention the fact that Abe can find ways of acquiring things." I said.

"Protection against the Alchemists themselves?" Rose suggested.

"Tell the Moroi and Dhampirs to not trust anyone with an Alchemist tattoo unless you say otherwise." I shrugged. "Every plan has drawbacks."

"Yeah, and I didn't even know the Alchemists existed until I met you, so maybe we can live without them." Rose shrugged.

"That's like saying you can live without classic cars just because you didn't know they existed." I pointed out.

"But I knew classic cars existed. Who doesn't know that?" Rose countered.

"Amish people." Adrian joked.

"Amish people know cars exist. They just don't use them." I rolled my eyes.

"Sydney has a point. Even the Keepers know cars exist, and they're pretty far behind." Rose said.

"Back on the point..." Lissa got our attention. "I just want to make sure we're covering everything before completely ditching relations with the Alchemists."

"I agree." I said. "I'm just saying that you can do this stuff yourself. Sure, you might need help sometimes, but that's what people like me are for. And the witches. Most of them are nice."

"Uh guys, you might want to take a look at this." Christian was holding Dimitri's iPad.

We looked at the screen and saw Alchemists—a large group of them—outside Court's gates. This was a live feed, and they were insisting on seeing the Queen. My father, Zoe, and Sheridan were among them.


	15. The Vote

**Chapter 15: The Vote**

**Sydney's POV**

We all walked to the gate. Rose kept herself firmly glued to Lissa and Eddie did the same for Jill. When we got there, the Alchemists immediately turned their attention to Lissa.

"Let us in!" My father demanded.

"You're not allowed in, remember?" Lissa said.

"Just give us Sydney and stay out of our business, and we'll leave you alone." Sheridan said.

"Or how about you leave Sydney and Jill alone and get the fuck off my porch. Then I'll leave you alone." Lissa countered.

"We haven't done anything to Jill. Other than protecting her." Dad scoffed.

"You kidnapped her. We have security footage of you taking her to your facility in Novosibirsk and torturing her. That is an act of war against the Moroi and will not be taken lightly." Lissa growled. "Now leave."

"If we took her, then how is she standing right there?" Sheridan countered.

"You know precisely how." Rose cracked her knuckles.

Sheridan looked moderately afraid—as she should've been—but she stood her ground. "You're lying."

"No, we're not. We will be presenting the footage of what you did to Jill to the royal council today and they will advise me on how best to retaliate." Lissa said. "And if I catch you anywhere near this court or any other vampire facility again, there will be retaliation of bloody proportions. Have a nice day."

Lissa moved away from the gates and we all stared at her in amazement. This might be the most confidence she's ever shown—and she's had her share of confident moments.

"Keep all Alchemists out unless I say otherwise. Only Moroi, Dhampirs, witches, and approved humans are allowed into Court until further notice." Lissa told one of the gate's guards.

"Wait, Lissa!" I called after her.

"Yes?" Lissa asked.

"You said that Alchemists can come in if you say so. Will you please authorize Zoe?" I asked.

Lissa pointed Zoe out. "She's the only one allowed in."

The guard nodded in understanding. The gates were opened just enough for a guardian to get out and pull Zoe back in.

"You can't take my daughter!" Dad yelled.

"She'll be returned. Assuming she wants to go back..." I said.

Zoe clung to me and I took her with me to follow Lissa. The royal council was supposed to be meeting to discuss the quorum law.

"I'm under orders to protect Jill instead of you. Is that alright?" Dimitri asked.

"Perfectly fine." Christian said. "No one goes after me anyway."

Lissa's royal guardians that normally remained hidden suddenly flanked around Jill. Eddie and Dimitri were the only ones in our group that got to stay by her side. Rose moved up so she could protect Lissa and Adrian moved closer to me.

"Jill could finally be free." I said.

"As free as a Moroi princess—especially the Queen's sister—ever is." Adrian nodded.

**Jill's POV**

As we entered the courtroom, people stared at me with fascination and even disgust. I was probably never going to get rid of that reputation as a love child, but people were going to respect me to a certain extent so they could impress Lissa. I was essentially a duff.

"Presenting Queen Vasilissa Dragomir and Princess Jillian Mastrano-Dragomir." Nathan Ivashkov announced. "We can now begin."

I was seated with the rest of the council members, only barely having the guardians move away from me. Only Eddie stayed next to me.

"Guardian, you're not allowed to be among the council members." Nathan said.

"I want him here." I said. "I feel safer."

Lissa and Rose shot me a set of amused smirks.

Nathan sighed. "Princess, he's not allowed to-"

"Ahem." Rose coughed, gesturing to her position next to Lissa's seat.

"Mr. Ivashkov, Eddie is perfectly fine. Besides, how can I expect her bodyguard to remain away from her if my guardian is next to me? Mine even gets a chair, while Eddie is standing." Lissa said.

I smiled brightly at Lissa and Rose gave her a pat on the back.

"Fine." Nathan groaned. "Let's just address our reasons for being here. The Queen wants to dismiss the quorum law—one of our most traditional laws. Mr. Taurus, you have the floor for the argument to keep the law."

I thought it was more proper to let the Queen go first, but I kept quiet as I watched Mr. Taurus stand and clear his throat.

"The quorum law is one of our oldest traditions and was decided on by the first Moroi council. Who are we to question their logic? We have the quorum law to keep us balanced, and so that we can have a council member for each seat even if the last of a line is the King or Queen. And we can't change our laws just because a nineteen year old asks us to." Mr. Taurus said. "End of my argument. Thank you."

As he sat down, I noticed that Lissa was biting her lip to keep from laughing.

"Queen Vasilissa, you have the floor for the counter argument." Nathan said.

Lissa stood and walked down to stand in front of the rest of the room. "I find it funny that Mr. Taurus referred to me by my age. Am I not your Queen? Do I not deserve the respect that position gives me just because I'm not as finely aged as the rest of the council?"

Everyone chuckled before going back to their serious demeanors.

"Alexandra was a young Queen, but she received respect. And this isn't just the whim of a young Queen. I'm trying to abolish the quorum law for the safety of my sister. If this law continues, my seat on the throne is fickle, but the throne isn't even my primary concern. Jill has been threatened and attacked just because she's my sister—just because someone wants me out of power. Sixteen year old girls shouldn't have to go through the things she's been through. No one should, really." Lissa continued.

Everyone listened solemnly.

"In fact, my sister was murdered and is only sitting here today because she has a bond with Adrian Ivashkov—much like the bond I once shared with Rosemarie Hathaway." Lissa said.

Everyone gasped. Rose was just annoyed at the use of her full name.

"And she was also attacked by the Alchemists we asked to protect her—but that is a matter best discussed in our next order of business. The point is that I'm not asking this on a whim, or even to save my seat on the throne. I'm asking to abolish the quorum law for the safety of Jillian Mastrano-Dragomir—my sister and one of the last of the Dragomir bloodline." Lissa said. "And addressing tradition, traditions are meant to be challenged. We remove them because sometimes it holds us back from a brighter future, and that future is worth more than nostalgia for the old ways. We're no different than the Keepers if we use tradition as an excuse not to change and evolve. Thank you for your consideration."

Her argument was so good I wanted to clap. A few other people looked impressed enough to do it as well.

"All in favor for keeping the quorum law?" Nathan turned to the council.

No one raised their hands.

"All in favor of abolishing the quorum law?" Nathan sighed.

Everyone raised their hands—even if they weren't council members. The guardians even raised their hands. Mr. Taurus was the only one who didn't agree—and that's probably only because Nathan wasn't allowed to vote while he was officiating. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'd like to move onto our next order of business—war against the Alchemists." Lissa announced.

Everyone stared at her in shock and started whispering among themselves.

"Why would we go to war against the Alchemists?" Someone asked.

"Quiet!" Lissa demanded.

Everyone immediately hushed themselves.

"The Alchemists kidnapped and brutally tortured Princess Jillian. That is an act of war, as she is not only royal, but the sister of a Queen." Lissa said.

"What proof do you have?" The Ivashkov council member asked.

"My proof is this security footage from an Alchemist reeducation center in Novosibirsk, Russia." Lissa handed a tape to Nathan. "Play this on the projector."

Nathan rushed to the projector's controls and inserted the tape. On the screen that was used for evidence in court cases, I suddenly popped up. It showed me being dragged into the reeducation center with a sack over my head. The next scene showed me naked in the solitary room, the voice taunting me. I was just lucky the angle was from a point where I still had a sense of modesty.

_"You know what you have to say, Jill." The voice taunted._

_In my fear, I complied. "I have sinned against God and have no soul. I am ready to have the darkness purged."_

People in the courtroom gasped.

The next scene was of me being shunned by the rest of the detainees—except for the rapist. He stared at me from across the room.

I shivered as I watched. People were sneaking me glances, seeing how I'd react.

Another scene showed me arguing with one of the teachers, then I was roughly dragged out and taken to another room. This was where I was tortured with the images of Moroi and the vomiting. People were already mortified from seeing me call Moroi evil, but the entire courtroom gagged as they watched me vomit. Then there was another set of footage that showed me arguing with another teacher, except this time it was the torture where I was burned with that weird liquid.

The rest of the courtroom gasped and winced as they watched me scream. Sydney, Adrian, and Eddie looked the most appalled.

The last scene shown was of the rapist detainee cornering me in the showers and Eddie tackling him.

Lissa ended the tape there. "Do you understand now?"

"How did you... come to possess these tapes?" Nathan asked.

"We acquired them while heading the strike team that saved Jill from this facility. I will not stand for this kind of torture to my family or any other vampire. And what's worse, they do this to humans too—such as Sydney Ivashkov, who was once one of their people. And it's only because they get friendly with vampires or fall in love with us." Lissa explained. "The war I'm suggesting doesn't have to be bloody, we merely have to stop using their resources. We will no longer interact with them officially, but I'm more than willing to let them remain friends on a personal level."

People got into hushed whispers.

"This also means that we'll have to help the Keepers, as they are no longer going to be helped by the Alchemists." Lissa added.

Angeline looked worried at that. She'd told me before how much her people depended on Alchemist resources. Now they were going to have to trust us again, but they considered us tainted. It was a complicated situation.

"We need to reach out to this lost part of our civilization and help them with whatever they need. They can live wherever they like, and we'll just supply whatever they need. Just the same as their deal with the Alchemists. And now that we aren't spending money on Alchemist help, we can spend it on the Keepers and our other people." Lissa went on.

People nodded as if that made sense, but it was obvious that they were flustered.

"I don't really care if you want to go to war or not. This isn't a vote, it's simply me bringing current events to your attention and asking if you'll back me." Lissa said.

People spoke among themselves for a few moments.

"Princess, did that really happen to you?" Ariana Szelsky asked.

"Yes." I said solemnly.

Ariana looked fiercely determined. "You have my best wishes. And I'm backing your sister."

"Thank you." I said.

"Alright." Lissa caught everyone's attention. "Who's with me?"

Everyone cheered. I assumed that meant that they were backing her.

"We stand with our Queen!" People exclaimed.

There were similar shouts of support. Lissa grinned, fangs showing. She was finally receiving her deserved respect and support.


	16. The Keepers

**Chapter 16: The Keepers**

**Sydney's POV**

Lissa asked Rose, Angeline, and I to be there while she asked the Keepers for peace. We were the only three who really knew anything about the Keepers. Naturally, that meant Dimitri, Trey, and Adrian were coming. Christian also came for Lissa, and Jill and Eddie had insisted on being there. We left in the back of an average car with blacked out windows so the Alchemists wouldn't know we left. We looked just like any other Moroi convoy.

"So... the Keepers are violent and think we're tainted?" Lissa asked.

"They only liked me because they thought I killed Tatiana." Rose said. "Also known as Queen of the Tainted."

"And because you beat Angeline." I added.

"And because Joshua liked you." Angeline smirked.

"They also trusted us because they thought Sydney was there to deliver supplies." Dimitri shrugged.

"Perhaps we should have brought some supplies?" Lissa bit her lip.

"Don't worry. They're good for another few months according to the last time I checked, and if I approve of you, they'll hear you out." Angeline said.

An awkward silence passed over our ride in the car and only continued on the plane we used to get to the Keepers. Angeline stared out the window calmly, probably pondering what her return would be like. She'd left her family to be with the Tainted, gotten an ex-vampire slayer for a boyfriend, and changed dramatically. She even started using less formal speaking terms, like slang and contractions. Angeline was the same... but different. We were accustomed to it, but the Keepers weren't.

"So, what's it like as a Keeper?" Lissa asked. "Rose told me some things, but not a lot."

Angeline turned to face Lissa. "We keep the old ways of the Moroi. Fights to the death—if deemed necessary—relationships with whatever race we choose, multiple wives, that kind of thing."

"And you beat each other up to prove people's worth." Rose added.

Angeline smirked. "That's just because I thought Joshua was going to marry you."

"You _did_ tell me about that." Lissa giggled.

"Trust me, it's more fun to see." I said.

We landed not long afterward and I drove us to see the Keepers—because I knew where they were. After parking, Angeline and I led everyone through the woods that led to the Keepers. Then we were all suddenly either knocked over or grabbed.

"Mother..." Angeline groaned.

Sure enough, the woman who'd tackled Angeline was Sarah Dawes.

"You led the Tainted here?!" Raymond Dawes—Angeline's father—exclaimed. "How could you... oh, hello Rose. It's alright, release the Tainted!"

"Seriously, you yell at Angeline, but you stop your attack on my account?" Rose groaned as she pushed Paulette off of her.

"Nice to see you again, Rose." Raymond gave Rose a hug.

Rose's expression seemed to scream _help me_ at Dimitri. Dimitri just grinned. Angeline brushed herself off after Trey helped her up.

"You weren't kidding when you said your family was violent." Trey joked.

Angeline grinned as if he'd just said something adorable.

"Finally! An opponent!" Joshua leapt onto Trey.

"What?" Trey got out before his breath was forced out.

Joshua didn't answer and continued attacking Trey. Trey probably would've fought back, but Angeline leapt onto Joshua and the two siblings rolled over a few times before she landed on top.

"What are you doing?" Trey caught his breath.

"You are Angeline's mate! I must prove your worth!" Joshua exclaimed, trying to push Angeline off.

"No, you don't." Angeline said, effectively pinning Joshua. "Trey's my boyfriend, not my mate. They aren't always the same thing."

"Are you just trying to spare him because he's weak?" Joshua asked.

"No, I'm trying to spare you. He could beat you to a pulp." Angeline said. "Now stop it."

"Are you breaking tradition? For God's sake, what have the Tainted done to you?" Raymond groaned.

"Nothing!" Angeline exclaimed, standing up. "Trey hasn't proposed marriage, which means he doesn't yet have to prove his worth."

"Yet?" Trey smirked.

Angeline blushed bright red. Rose bit back laughter.

"Look, we're here to talk to you. And not about Angeline." I said.

"Hello, Lily-girl." Joshua stood up.

"Hi, Joshua." I sighed. "Now can we please talk about something important?"

"Rose!" It was almost as if Joshua just noticed her. He knocked her over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I knew you'd come back for me!"

Rose pushed him off and winced. "Joshua, I'm here on business. This has nothing to do with you."

"So you're not here to become my second wife?" Joshua frowned.

"No. I'm still promised to Dimitri." Rose coughed.

"But you still have no ring." Joshua said.

"For God's sake, I'm only nineteen! I don't have to get married right this minute." Rose said. Then she looked at Adrian and I. "Oh, but you guys are fine."

"Lily-girl married a Moroi?" Joshua wiggled his eyebrows. "Isn't that against your beliefs?"

"That's kind of what we're here to talk about." I sighed.

We were finally taken back to Raymond's house and got to talk about things between the Alchemists and the Moroi, and how it effected the Keepers. Then we made our offer of help.

"Why should I trust the Tainted?" Raymond asked.

"Because Angeline does, Lily-girl does, and Dimitri and I do. Don't you trust us?" Rose said.

"We don't know who to trust anymore." Sarah looked between Angeline and Lissa. "Come up with a better reason."

"How about you believe me? Even if it's just because I'm your daughter?" Angeline suggested. "I trust them. Regardless of how Tainted we believe they are, they have humane values just like we do. They only want to help us. If they didn't care about us, they wouldn't be offering their help now."

"There is no us anymore, Angeline." Sarah said. "You are Tainted—just like them."

Angeline looked like she'd just been hit with a truck. I knew how bad it felt to have a parent you wanted so badly to impress, but they only ever put you down. Angeline immediately rushed out of the house.

"Angeline, wait!" Trey exclaimed as he followed her.

**Angeline's POV**

I... I was considered Tainted among my own people. That was the one thing I'd never expected. Especially from my own mother... I wandered through the woods after having run long enough to ditch Trey. I felt bad for shutting him out, but I didn't want anyone to see me cry.

"Angeline?" A familiar voice broke my silence.

I turned to find Joseph, my ex-boyfriend. "Joseph."

"Why are you crying?" Joseph immediately stepped forward and grabbed my hands.

We'd long since broken up, but Keepers didn't have much concept of personal boundaries.

"My... my mother thinks I'm Tainted." I sniffled.

"Sarah is crazy. You could never be Tainted." Joseph assured me.

"Thanks, Joseph." I smiled sadly at him.

Joseph suddenly sprang forward and kissed me. Since Keepers had no concept of personal boundaries, tongue was used and he groped me. I'd once have thought this kiss was normal, but I pushed him away now.

"Joseph, stop." I said.

"Why?" Joseph asked.

"Because I have a boyfriend. One who I hope will one day be my mate." I said.

"So? You can marry more than one person." Joseph said.

"No. I don't want to marry more than one person. And I don't want him to marry more than one person. I want it to just be us." I sighed.

Joseph stared at me as if I'd just said the sun was purple. "You... the Tainted really have changed you. I don't know to what extent, but they've changed you. Goodbye, Angeline."

Joseph walked away. Based on the ring on his finger, he was probably going back to his wife.

That was the one thing Joseph and my family didn't understand. All of the changes my friends in Palm Springs had supposedly brought about... they weren't actually changes. I liked hitting people as much as the next Keeper, but not to the extent of hurting someone I loved.

And as for marriage... I'd always secretly thought that only one man and one woman should have each other once you were married, or even if you were just in a steady relationship. I know that sounds contradictive when you consider that I cheated on Eddie with Trey, but I didn't do that because I wanted two boyfriends. I did it because I was starting to realize I didn't like Eddie, but I did like Trey.

I sighed, knowing my family wouldn't understand.

"Angeline?" Another familiar voice said.

I turned and twitched a smile when I saw Trey. "Hi, Trey."

Trey moved forward and gave me a hug. "Maybe you should've let your brother fight me."

I sighed. "No. You would've beaten him to a pulp, and that would just wound his pride."

Trey smiled and gave me a kiss. Although I wouldn't have been opposed to one with tongue, I was glad he gave me a sweet kiss that only involved our lips. Then I thought about something.

"Trey, how long were you behind me before you said my name?" I asked.

Trey smiled. "Long enough to see a Keeper kiss you and you push him away. I kind of liked the part where you told him you were hoping I'd be your mate—your only mate."

I blushed. "I..."

"Let's go back to our friends before they think you've decided to live here and purge yourself of their friendship." Trey smirked.

As he started walking, I pulled him back and kissed him. "Okay, now I can go back."

By the time we walked back to my parents' house, they were outside, seeming to wait for something.

"Angeline." My father stood up.

I looked up at him silently.

"You really believe the Tainted care about us, don't you?" Father asked.

"I know they do." I said.

"And from what Joseph tells me... you no longer believe in multiple marriages?" Father hesitated.

I sighed, knowing it was time to tell the truth. "I never did. I liked the storybook endings where one man gets one woman. I wanted that. I also wanted it because... I hated the fact that you had two wives. Mother and Paulette constantly fought for your attention, and neither of them ever seemed happy."

Mother and Paulette's eyes widened as they stared at me in shock.

Father just frowned and nodded his head. "You only want one mate?"

"I only want Trey." I said.

Trey's grasp on my hands never faltered and he gave me a squeeze of reassurance at what I just said.

"So, you trust the Tainted? You believe they'll fulfill all of our needs in the Lily-people's absence?" Father asked again.

"Yes, I strongly believe that my friends want nothing more than to protect and provide for you." I said.

Father sighed and turned to someone in the doorway. "If she trusts you, I suppose I should as well."

After he moved out of the way, I realized my friends were in the doorway. They'd been listening this entire time.

"Angeline." Jill gave me a hug.

I returned it with a sigh.

"So, I'm guessing the monarch still doesn't have to fight to the death for their position?" Joshua asked Lissa.

"Trust me, I've had to go through multiple deadly battles and experiences to get where I am today." Lissa sighed.

Joshua grinned. "Then you have my respect. So... are you in the same state of mind as Rose about multiple marriages...?"

"She's mine." Christian put his arms around Lissa protectively.

Lissa grinned. "I'm sorry Joshua, but we're all monogamists."

"Get back to me if you ever change your mind." Joshua offered.

"Manwhore..." Rose muttered.

Dimitri grinned and whispered something to her. She smirked in return.

"I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but we have to get back to Court. I'll send some diplomats tomorrow. Maybe Rose and Angeline." Lissa smiled.

"No." Rose said.

I didn't really want to either, but I figured it best to keep that to myself. We were all on the plane again an hour later.

"Thank you, Angeline. You saved our negotiation." Lissa said.

"Yeah, I was thinking about the negotiation." I smirked as I leaned against Trey.

I think Lissa detected my sarcasm, but she grinned anyway. Sydney and Jill shot me some grateful looks too. Trey smiled down at me and I wondered how long it would be before he proposed now that he knew that's what I wanted.


	17. Treaty of War

**Chapter 17: Treaty of War**

**Sydney's POV**

After we got back, Lissa immediately set out to write demands to the Alchemists. The demands were actually pretty passive, mostly involving telling the Alchemists we'd stay out of their business if they'd stay out of ours.

"Sydney, will you review this? I'd like to know if I stated this right." Lissa requested. "Please."

I looked over what she'd written. It said:

_The Moroi hereby rescind all official transactions with the Alchemists. We, the Moroi, no longer find our relationship with the Alchemists to be beneficial or safe. The Moroi will try our best to stay out of further Alchemist affairs, as will the Alchemists stay out of all further Moroi affairs. Sydney Katherine Ivashkov and Adrian Ivashkov will hereby be pardoned of supposed past illegal activities and left in the care of the Moroi. If any Moroi is in violation of these laws, they will be punished accordingly by their superiors. If any Alchemist is in violation of these laws, the Moroi will go to war against the Alchemists. If the Alchemists and Moroi can agree to these terms, sign below._

_X_(Queen Vasilissa Dragomir)_

_X_(Leader of the Alchemists)_

I grinned. "It's perfect. Now it just needs a working title."

Lissa pondered for a moment. "The Treaty of War."

"You're ready to give this to the Alchemists, then." I handed the paper back.

Rose looked over the treaty. "It looks great, Liss."

Lissa had the treaty officially typed up and signed her line of it. Then she called in the Alchemists—particularly the leaders. The set of leaders that came in was... Gordon and Sheila Mortimer. Duncan's parents. My father, Ian, Stanton, and Sheridan followed. Adrian and I grabbed each other's hands.

"So, you've finally come to your senses?" My father asked.

"No. I'm still not releasing Sydney and Adrian to you." Lissa said.

"Then what's the point in being here?" Sheridan sighed.

"The point is that I want to give you this." Lissa handed over the treaty.

Gordon and Sheila scrutinized it.

"You want to pull away from us?" Gordon asked.

"Very much so." Lissa nodded.

"May I ask why?" Sheila questioned.

"Multiple reasons. Your treatment of Adrian and Sydney. Your association with the Warriors of Light. Kidnapping my sister and putting her in reeducation. The fact that I know you don't really like us." Lissa ticked off on her fingers. "The list could go on and on."

"But you need us to help you stay hidden." Gordon pointed out.

"No, we don't." Lissa said. "We've patched up our differences with the Keepers, and we know what else you normally do for us, so we can sustain ourselves from here. I just want to sever all ties with you sick bastards before something else happens."

"We're the sick bastards? Have you taken a look in the mirror?" Sheila scoffed.

"I'm sorry, but we don't put our people through a torture program to correct their behavior—especially not our own children. We also don't shame and punish people for falling in love with the other races, unlike you. I don't join secret combinations with the Warriors against you. I don't steal your supreme leader's relative and put her in reeducation, and I sure as hell don't let the inmates try to rape each other." Lissa growled.

"If any Alchemist tried to rape your sister, she probably asked for it." Ian said.

Eddie leapt onto Ian in fury. "How dare you?!"

Rose and Dimitri immediately grabbed Eddie and held him back. Jill grabbed Eddie's arm and tried to calm him down.

"I certainly don't think any woman ever asks for rape." Lissa's eyes showed fury beyond measure. "Now sign the treaty and get out."

The Alchemists looked reluctant and indecisive for a moment, but then Gordon and Sheila signed the treaty.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Dad exclaimed.

"We might as well just let them go, Jared." Gordon sighed.

"Your daughter isn't worth it. And neither is the other one—Zoe?—compared to what we'll lose going after them. Just let it and the vampires go." Sheila agreed.

Ouch. But as long as they were finally going to leave us alone, I could handle the insult. The Alchemists finally left—Dad kicking and screaming—and we followed them as they were escorted out.

"I still think you're sick for sending Duncan to reeducation—your own son." I said.

"And we think he's sick for being friends with vampires." Gordon said.

"And for being friends with you." Sheila added.

I was happy beyond belief as soon as the gates were shut behind them. That relief didn't last long.

"Rosemarie Hathaway!" A familiar voice yelled.

Rose flinched before calming herself down. "God, only Lissa, Kirova, and Mom call me that. Usually when they're angry. Oh, and that teacher from when we were five."

We all turned to see Jill's mom and stepfather heading straight for us.

"You know, I regret ever letting Jill put herself in your care." Emily Mastrano stood in front of Rose.

"What in God's name are you talking about?" Rose looked flustered. "Jill's fine."

"She's not fine! You already took her away from us, then you put her into hiding, then she got kidnapped by Alchemists!" John Mastrano exclaimed.

Lissa started to protest. "Mr. Mastrano-"

"Stop!" Emily exclaimed. "All you've done since you found out about Jill is use her for your political agenda and let her get hurt. I'm sick of it."

Rose frowned. "Mrs. Mastrano, please. You can't put this much stress on Lissa when-"

Emily looked furious. "Right, I can't put stress on Lissa because she doesn't have time for Jill or the stress that goes with her. Well, I do. And I'm not letting you use her further. You've even sunk low enough to use footage of her naked just to further your own agenda with the Alchemists! You don't give a damn about Jill, and you're just ashamed of her because your manwhore of a father-"

Lissa slapped Emily. "Don't you dare talk about my father that way! If he's a manwhore, then you're a whore! Regardless of what he did with you, you and I both know he was an otherwise honorable man! He even wanted to be part of Jill's life and take responsibility for her, but you wouldn't let him! So he even gave her a trust fund!"

Emily looked like she was going to say something back, but Jill stopped her. "Stop it! Lissa and Rose didn't do anything wrong. They actually went to great lengths to save me, and it had nothing to do with their political agendas. They just did it because they love me."

"Honey..." John said.

"No. These people are my family just as much as you guys are. I might be a Mastrano, but I'm also a Dragomir." Jill said.

"We just want to take you home." Emily sighed.

"I can't leave. Even if I didn't have this new family... I have Eddie." Jill admitted.

Her parents looked at Eddie in shock. Eddie didn't know how to respond.

"I told you it would be awkward." Rose whispered.

"Shut up." Lissa elbowed her.

Jill pulled Eddie closer. "If you love me, you'll leave me here. Or maybe even move here yourself."

Emily and John looked in tears as they hugged Jill. This week had been a strange one.


End file.
